Sofía: Good morning, Ben! How are you doing today?
Ben: Good morning, Sofía! I am doing well, thanks. How is it going with the studio?
Sofía: Fantastic! Look at the time, I must go to my meeting. See you later!
Ben: Have a nice day, Sofía! Take care!
Common mistake: “Good night everyone! I just arrived at the evening class, how are you?” — Correct: “Good evening everyone! I just arrived at the evening class, how are you?”
We use greetings to open social interactions politely and farewells to close them warmly depending on the time of day and formality.
Mastering Greetings & Farewells by Time of Day
Moment / Context
Natural English Expression
Spanish Trap to Avoid
Morning (until 12:00 PM)
Good morning! / Morning!
Don't say 'good days' (calque of 'buenos días')
Afternoon (12:00 PM to 6:00 PM)
Good afternoon!
Don't confuse afternoon with evening
Arriving at Night (after 6:00 PM)
Good evening! (greeting)
NEVER say 'Good night' when arriving (X)
Departing at Night / Bedtime
Good night! / Sleep well! (farewell)
Only use to say goodbye or go to sleep
Asking Well-Being
How are you? / How are you doing?
Don't answer 'I have good' (calque of 'tengo')
Leaving for Tomorrow
See you tomorrow!
Don't say 'Until tomorrow' (calque of 'hasta mañana')
Good morning — Buenos días (hasta las 12 PM)
Good afternoon — Buenas tardes (12 PM a 6 PM)
Good evening — Buenas noches al llegar (saludo)
Good night — Buenas noches al despedirse o ir a dormir
How are you doing? — ¿Cómo te va? / ¿Cómo estás?
I am doing well, thanks — Estoy muy bien, gracias
Not bad, and you? — Nada mal, ¿y tú?
How is it going? — ¿Qué tal? / ¿Cómo van las cosas?
See you later — Hasta luego / Nos vemos luego
See you tomorrow — Hasta mañana / Nos vemos mañana
Have a nice day — Que tengas un buen día
Take care — Cuídate / Que te vaya bien
Nice seeing you — Qué gusto verte
Have a great weekend — Que tengas un buen fin de semana
Good morning, my name is Sofía and I am glad to see you.
Good evening is the polite greeting when arriving after six o'clock.
Have a wonderful day at the design studio, Kenji.
Good night is not a greeting when you enter a party.
We do not say 'until tomorrow' in natural English conversations.
I am not doing well today because I have a cold.
How are you doing this morning, Ben?
Are you having a good afternoon so far?
Shall we say goodbye now or wait for the teacher?
Are you doing well today? Yes, I am.
Is 'Good evening' used when you arrive at night? Yes, it is.
Do native speakers say 'Good night' when saying hello? No, they do not.
Practice
You arrive at a dinner party at 7:30 PM. The polite greeting is: ___ (Good evening!, Good night!, Good afternoon!)
When a colleague asks 'How are you doing?', the most natural response is: ___ (I am doing well, thanks!, I have very good!, Until tomorrow!)
It is Friday at 5:00 PM and everyone is leaving work. You say: ___ (Have a great weekend!, Good morning!, Pleased to meet you!)
You say goodbye to a classmate you will see again the next morning: ___ (See you tomorrow!, Until the morning!, Good evening!)
'Good night' is a greeting used when you enter a room in the evening.
'See you later' and 'Take care' are natural ways to say goodbye to a friend.
It is 9:00 AM at the academy. 'Good ___ (morning / night), everyone!'
I am leaving the library at 10:00 PM. 'Good ___ (night / evening), sleep well!'
Kenji smiled and said, 'See you ___ (later / after) at the cafe!'
Unscramble: How, are, you, doing, today, ?
Unscramble: Have, a, wonderful, day, !
Find the mistake: Good night! I just arrived at the conference.
Find the mistake: How are you? — I have good, thanks.
Good morning. — Change this greeting for arriving at 7:00 PM.
Goodbye, see you. — Transform it into a warm wish for someone's day (use 'Have a nice day!').
Is 'Good evening' a greeting when you arrive after 6 PM? (Short answer: Yes)
Do native speakers say 'Good night' when they say hello? (Short answer: No)
Listening
Sofía: Good morning, Kenji! How is your English class going?
Kenji: Good morning, Sofía! It is going great. How are you doing today?
Sofía: I am doing very well, thanks! Ben is joining us for coffee this afternoon.
Kenji: Wonderful! What time should we meet at the cafe?
Sofía: Let us meet at three o'clock. See you later!
Kenji: See you later, Sofía! Have a nice afternoon!
Reading
Every morning at eight o'clock, Sofía arrives at her design studio in Medellín and says, 'Good morning everyone!' Her colleagues reply warmly, 'Morning, Sofía!' During the day, clients visit the studio, and Sofía always greets them politely with, 'Good afternoon, welcome to our studio.' When leaving the office in the late afternoon, she never says 'good night' to people who are still arriving. Instead, she smiles and says, 'See you tomorrow, take care!' In English, choosing the right greeting for each moment of the day builds trust and strong relationships.
Sofía arrives at her design studio in the morning.
Sofía says 'Good night' to clients when they arrive in the afternoon.
Sofía says 'See you tomorrow, take care!' when leaving the office.
In English, greetings change depending on the time of day.