lesson

Updated 6 days ago
Imagine walking into your classroom at 8:00 in the morning and yelling, "Good night, teacher!" Your friends would look very confused.
Words we use to say hello are called greetings, and picking the right one depends on where the sun is in the sky.
Greetings Across the Day
We match our hello to three main parts of the day: morning, afternoon, and evening.
๐Interactive diagram
What about when it is dark outside and time to sleep? Can we say "Good night" to say hello?
Hello vs. Goodbye
We use Good evening when we arrive and meet someone after dark, but we save Good night for saying goodbye right before leaving or going to sleep.
Key takeaways
- A greeting is a polite word or phrase used when meeting someone, welcoming someone, or starting a conversation.
- Different times of day require specific time-based greetings: 'Good morning' is used from sunrise until midday (12:00ย PM), 'Good afternoon' is used from midday (12:00ย PM) until around sunset or early evening (5:00ย PMโ6:00ย PM), and 'Good evening' is used from early evening until nighttime.
- General greetings like 'Hello' and 'Hi' can be used at any time of day, but time-specific greetings show added politeness, attentiveness, and cultural awareness.
- 'Good night' is a farewell (leave-taking expression) used when departing in the evening or going to sleep, whereas 'Good evening' is a greeting used upon arrival or meeting someone.