Greetings
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Translate beso from Spanish to EnglishAll The Mexican Slang Terms You Need To Know20 Mexican Slang Words You Need to Know Before You Travel20 Ways to Say You're Embarrassed in Spanish- A firm handshake with eye contact and a smile is the appropriate greeting in most situations. In more casual settings, people may simply give one another a nod of the head.
- Once people become acquainted, greetings become a lot warmer and Mexicans often prefer to embrace (abrazo). This involves a loose embrace accompanied with a kiss on the right cheek.
- The common verbal greeting is “Buenos dias” (Good day), “Buenas tardes” (Good afternoon) or “Buenas noches” (Good evening/night) depending on the time of day.
- A more casual greeting is “Hola” (Hello), “¿Qué tal?” (What’s up?) or “¿Cómo estás?” (How are you?).
- Be aware that greetings may differ in predominantly Indigenous towns. For instance, in many towns in the state of Oaxaca, the expected greeting is a loose handshake (never a kiss or embrace) as close physical contact with people outside of one's family is less common.
- It is generally polite to show personal interest in the person you are greeting, such as enquiring about their family and health.
- The formal title used to greet people is ‘Señor’ (Mr) for men and ‘Señora’ (Ms) for women. This is followed by one’s surname.
- Elders may be addressed as ‘Don’ (Sir) or Doña (Ma’am) followed by their first name to show more respect.
- It is common for people to briefly interrupt a conversation in order to greet somebody who has just arrived or who is passing by. This is generally not considered rude.
