“Good evening” and “good night” in 25 languages: how to say each one, and when to use which

TL;DR: “Good evening” is bonsoir in French, guten Abend in German, buonasera in Italian,
добрый вечер (dobryy vecher) in Russian and こんばんは (konbanwa) in Japanese. “Good
night” is bonne nuit, gute Nacht, buonanotte, спокойной ночи (spokoynoy nochi) and
おやすみなさい (oyasuminasai). Evening greetings are said on arrival; good-night phrases
are said on leaving or before sleep. Spanish and Portuguese use one expression for both
good evening and good night, buenas noches and boa noite, and meaning is conveyed by
the situation.

The phrases below include their original scripts and beginner-friendly romanisations.
Pronunciation cannot always be captured accurately in English letters, so use them
alongside native-speaker audio where possible to ensure you are learning the correct
pronunciation.


How do you say “good evening” in different languages?

“Good evening” is buenas noches in Spanish, bonsoir in French, guten Abend in German,
buonasera in Italian and konbanwa in Japanese; all 25 languages are in the table below.
These phrases are intended as greetings. Some are used only after a specific time. Others
are general greetings that remain natural during the evening. Knowing the words is only the
first step of learning these phrases. You can hear how native speakers use everyday
greetings and learn their specific pronunciation with Memrise’s expansive library of video
lessons.

How do you say “good night” in different languages?

“Good night” is bonne nuit in French, gute Nacht in German, buonanotte in Italian,
спокойной ночи (spokoynoy nochi) in Russian and おやすみなさい (oyasuminasai) in
Japanese, with all 25 languages listed below. It is said when parting, or when someone is
going to sleep or leaving for the night. It does not replace “hello” simply because it is dark
outside.

What do these phrases mean in each language?

Below is an overview of each of these languages and which to use in different scenarios (for
example, as a night-time greeting versus going to sleep/leaving).

Spanish
Buenas noches works as both an evening greeting and a farewell. The situation makes the
meaning clear.

French
Use bonsoir when greeting someone in the evening. Bonne nuit is said when parting or
going to bed.

German
Guten Abend welcomes someone during the evening. Gute Nacht wishes them a good night
when leaving or sleeping.

Italian
Buonasera is the evening greeting. Buonanotte is reserved for farewells and bedtime.

Portuguese
Boa noite covers both meanings. It can greet someone at night or end an evening
conversation.

Dutch
Use goedenavond as the greeting. Welterusten means “sleep well” and is natural when
someone is going to bed.

Swedish
God kväll greets someone during the evening. God natt is used when parting or retiring for
the night.

Polish
Dobry wieczór is an evening greeting. Dobranoc is said when leaving or going to bed.

Russian
Use добрый вечер (dobryy vecher) when meeting someone. Спокойной ночи (spokoynoy
nochi) literally wishes them a peaceful night.

Ukrainian
Добрий вечір (dobryi vechir) is the evening greeting. На добраніч (na dobranich) is used as
a night-time farewell.

Greek
Καλησπέρα (kalispera) covers the later part of the day and evening. Καληνύχτα (kalinichta)
is said when parting at night.

Turkish
İyi akşamlar greets someone or wishes them a pleasant evening. İyi geceler is used later
when parting.

Arabic
ءاسمريخلا (masaa al-khayr) is a widely understood evening greeting. حبصتىلعريخ (tusbih ala
khayr) is a common bedtime wish, with forms varying by whom you are talking to.

Hebrew
ברעבוט (erev tov) means “good evening”. הלילבוט (laila tov) is used when parting or wishing
someone good night.

Hindi
नमस्ते (namaste) remains natural in the evening; शुभ संध्या (shubh sandhya) is more formal.
शुभ रात्रि(shubh raatri) is a formal good-night wish.

Urdu
ماشریخب (shaam bakhair) means “good evening”, while بشریخب (shab bakhair) is used to wish
someone good night.

Bengali
শুভ সন্ধ্যা(shubho shondha) is the evening greeting. শুভ রাত্রি(shubho ratri) is the
corresponding night-time farewell.

Mandarin Chinese
晚上好 (wǎnshàng hǎo) greets someone in the evening. 晚安 (wǎn’ān) is normally used
when parting late or going to sleep.

Japanese
こんばんは (konbanwa) is the standard evening greeting. おやすみなさい (oyasuminasai)
politely wishes someone good night.

Korean
Korean normally uses 안녕하세요 (annyeonghaseyo) regardless of the time. 안녕히 주무세요
(annyeonghi jumuseyo) is a respectful bedtime wish.

Indonesian
Selamat malam greets someone once evening has begun. Selamat tidur more specifically
means “sleep well”.

Vietnamese
Chào buổi tối is understandable but less common than a general greeting. Chúc ngủ ngon
wishes someone a good sleep.

Thai
Thai normally uses สวัสดีครับ/ค่ะ (sawatdee khrap/kha) throughout the day. ฝันดี (fan di)
means “sweet dreams” and is natural before bed.

Swahili
Habari za jioni asks about someone’s evening and functions as a greeting. Usiku mwema
wishes them a good night.

Romanian
Bună seara is used when meeting someone in the evening. Noapte bună is the night-time
farewell.



Frequently asked questions

How can you remember greetings in different languages?
Learn “good evening” and “good night” as a pair but attach each one to a different situation:
arriving somewhere in the evening and leaving or going to bed. Pairing them that way stops
the two blurring together, which is the usual reason learners reach for the wrong one. Saying
both aloud after a native speaker will help you to solidify your pronunciation alongside the
meaning.

How can you improve your pronunciation?
A word can feel familiar when you read and write it repeatedly. However, this tactic does not
give your memory enough opportunities to retrieve it. Regular recall, spaced review, and
using words in context can make vocabulary easier to access later.

Should you learn the original scripts too?
Yes, if you plan to use the language beyond a handful of phrases. Memrise provides
romanisation as a basic guide but these spellings do not represent every sound, and
different sources can spell the same sound differently. The original script ties spelling to
pronunciation far more reliably. However, for a phrase or two before a trip, romanisation on
its own is fine.

Why do some languages use the same phrase for both meanings?
Languages categorise different times of the evening in different ways. Spanish and
Portuguese use one expression (buenas noches and boa noite respectively) and the context
determines whether it is a greeting or a farewell. French, German, and Japanese keep the
two distinct, with a separate phrase for meeting someone in the evening and another for
leaving or going to sleep.