HELLO
What does "HELLO" mean?
An expression used as a greeting or to answer the telephone.
Meanings
- A word used to greet someone or begin a phone call. She opened the door with a cheerful hello.
- An exclamation used to attract attention or express surprise. Hello, what's all this then? informal
- An act of greeting. He gave a quick hello and hurried on.
Did you know?
- We say 'hello' on the phone because Thomas Edison pushed for it - Alexander Graham Bell wanted callers to answer with 'ahoy', and lost.
Word origin
First recorded around 1827, a variant of older 'hollo' and 'hallo', calls used to hail someone or urge on dogs; popularized as a telephone greeting in the late 1870s.
Remember it
HELLO has a hidden 'hell' and 'ello' - the friendliest word with the fieriest first half.
A little poem
Two strangers, one word-
a door swings open between
who you were and are.
haiku
Wordplay
- Bell wanted us to answer the phone with 'ahoy'. Edison said hello. To this day no pirate has ever successfully run a call centre.
What it teaches
A hello costs nothing and opens everything; the smallest word is often the first brave one.
Quick facts
What does HELLO mean?
An expression used as a greeting or to answer the telephone.
Is HELLO a valid word?
Yes — HELLO is one of the answer words in Wordul, the daily word game.
How many letters is HELLO?
HELLO has 5 letters and 2 syllables.
Where does HELLO come from?
First recorded around 1827, a variant of older 'hollo' and 'hallo', calls used to hail someone or urge on dogs; popularized as a telephone greeting in the late 1870s.
What can HELLO teach us?
A hello costs nothing and opens everything; the smallest word is often the first brave one.
How players do
Be the first to solve it.