1883, alteration of hallo, itself an alteration of holla, hollo, a shout to attract attention, which seems to go back to at least c. 1400. Perhaps from holla! "stop, cease." OED cites Old High German hala, hola, emphatic imperative of halon, holon "to fetch," "used especially in hailing a ferryman." Fowler lists halloo, hallo, halloa, halloo, hello, hillo, hilloa, holla, holler, hollo, holloa, hollow, hullo, and writes, "The multiplicity of forms is bewildering ...." Popularity as a greeting coincides with use of the telephone, where it won out over Alexander Graham Bell's suggestion, ahoy. Central telephone exchange operators were known as hello-girls (1889).
Hello, formerly an Americanism, is now nearly as common as hullo in Britain (Say who you are; do not just say 'hello' is the warning given in our telephone directories) and the Englishman cannot be expected to give up the right to say hello if he likes it better than his native hullo. [H.W. Fowler, "A Dictionary of Modern English Usage," 1926]
实用例句
1. I answered the phone and this voice went, "Hello? Is that Alison?"
我拿起电话，就听到这个声音：“喂？是艾利森吗？”
来自柯林斯例句
2. A moment later, Cohen picked up the phone. "Hello?"
过了一会儿，科恩接起电话。“喂？”
来自柯林斯例句
3. "Hello, I don't think we've met," Robert introduced himself.
“你好，我想我们还没有见过吧，”罗伯特自我介绍道。
来自柯林斯例句
4. "Hello there," said the woman, smiling at them.— 'Hi!' they chorused.
