Ahoj / Čau

Informal Hi and Bye

Level 1

Ahoj and čau are the friendly way to say hi and bye. Use them with people you call ty.

How It Works

Hello and goodbye in one word. Ahoj works both when you meet someone and when you leave: Ahoj, Zuzka! (Hi, Zuzka!) or Tak ahoj! (Well, bye!). Čau does the same and sounds more relaxed. It comes from Italian ciao, and dictionaries also accept the spelling čao.

Who you say it to. Use these words with people you address with ty: friends, family, children and people your own age in relaxed settings. Young people often use ahoj with each other straight away. For people you address with vy, choose Dobrý deň and Dovidenia. See ty and vy.

Greeting a group. In everyday speech, people add -te to greet several friends at once: Ahojte! or Čaute! This is the same -te you hear in the plural verb form máte.

Names stay in their basic form. Say Ahoj, Peter! and Čau, Zuzka! Slovak does not change the name when you speak to someone. See old address forms.

What comes next. A friendly greeting is often followed by Ako sa máš? (How are you?), and a goodbye by Maj sa! (Take care!).

Examples (5)

  1. Ahoj, Zuzka!

    Hi, Zuzka!

    A friendly hello to someone you call ty.

  2. Čau, uvidíme sa zajtra.

    Bye, see you tomorrow.

    Here čau means goodbye.

  3. Ahoj, Peter, ako sa máš?

    Hi, Peter, how are you?

    Ahoj goes with the ty form máš.

  4. Ahojte, ako sa máte?

    Hi everyone, how are you?

    Ahojte greets a group of friends.

  5. Tak ahoj, maj sa!

    Well, bye, take care!

    Word by Word: So bye, have yourself!

    Here ahoj means goodbye.

Common Mistakes

  • Saying ahoj to someone you address with vy.

    Ahoj, pani Horváthová, ako sa máte?
    Dobrý deň, pani Horváthová, ako sa máte?

    Ahoj is for people you call ty. With pani and the polite máte, use Dobrý deň.

  • Changing the name the way Czech does.

    Ahoj, Petre!
    Ahoj, Peter!

    Petre is Czech. Slovak keeps the basic form of the name: Ahoj, Peter!

How It Connects

Tap a pattern to see what it builds on and what it leads to.

Ahoj / ČauLevel 1Informal Hi and Bye

Learn This First

Before Informal Hi and Bye, learn Informal ty and Polite vy. Ahoj and čau are used with people you address with ty.

Words in This Pattern

ahojčau