#171 Different Ways to Greet Someone in English

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Transcript:

When was the last time you saw people shaking hands? I can’t remember either, maybe in a movie.

Hi, I am Georgiana, your English teacher and founder of SpeakEnglishPodcast.com. And I am here to help you speak English fluently with no grammar and no textbooks.

Today, I will talk about different ways to greet someone while avoiding physical contact as much as possible.

And with mini-story, you will improve your fluency. I will ask you many questions that you will need to answer right away. It’s like speaking English with another person.

The situation has changed quite a bit since last year. It has impacted the way we interact with other people drastically.

Nowadays, instead of shaking hands, we tend to wave from a distance. 

Today we will look at some ways of saying hello that have become popular over the last year.

Let’s start!

1. Elbow bump.

The idea is to use your elbow to touch the other person’s elbow. The elbow is the joint we have in the middle of each arm.

I consider this kind of greeting a bit absurd since you end up making physical contact in another way, but you avoid contact with your hands.

However, it is easy to touch your elbows with your hands. For example, you might touch your elbows when crossing your arms. So, it’s better not to have any contact at all.

2. Saying hello with your feet.

Yes. I’ve seen some people use their feet to say hello. And it looks strange, but the first time I saw it, I thought it was hilarious. The idea is to make each other’s feet collide. 

I guess it’s safer than the elbow bump, but it requires some skill to stay balanced.

For a couple of seconds, you need to stand on one foot. So perhaps for older people, it’s not the best idea.

3. High five from a distance.

See, this seems more logical to me. You raise your right hand and pretend you are high-fiving. There is no contact whatsoever. 

However, imagine you will greet someone, and you high-five in the air, but the other person doesn’t and stares at what you’re doing. It’s a bit embarrassing.

4. Military-style salute.

As you can imagine, it is the typical salute that militaries give. Although we do it in a more relaxed and less abrupt way.

When I greet someone on the street, I raise my hand and say, “hello.” I do it quickly, and it’s more natural that way. I don’t like the elbow or foot greeting.

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