Ask about an unfamiliar regional greeting in German

The idea

Germany has several regional greetings. “Moin” (sometimes “Moin moin”) is widespread in the north, especially near the coast, and is used all day, informally and often at work too. In Bavaria and Austria “Grüß Gott” is common, and “Servus” is a casual hello and goodbye in the south and in Austria; in Switzerland you hear “Grüezi”. “Hallo” and “Guten Tag” work everywhere. If you are not from the region, using the local greeting is usually received well, but a neutral one is never wrong. Grammar: “morgens” (lower case, with -s) means “in the mornings”.

Other ways to say it

“Sagt man hier auch am Abend noch Moin?” – Neutral question about local usage, not one person’s habit.

“Ist Moin eher locker, oder geht das auch im Büro?” – Asks about register: casual versus professional settings.

“Welchen Gruß benutzt man in deiner Gegend?” – Casual; opens a conversation about regional greetings.

Examples

• Ich höre hier oft Moin und kenne den Gebrauch noch nicht gut.I often hear Moin here and do not yet know its use well.
• Du kannst mich gern nach meiner Bedeutung fragen.You are welcome to ask me what I mean by it.
• Verwendest du es nur morgens oder auch später?Do you use it only in the morning or later too?
• Ich grüße damit persönlich auch zu anderen Tageszeiten.I personally also use it to greet people at other times of day.
• Dann verstehe ich zunächst deinen eigenen Sprachgebrauch.Then I initially understand your own use of language.
• Genau, andere Personen können andere Gewohnheiten haben.Exactly; other people may have different habits.

Watch out

“Verwendest du es nur am morgens?” → “Verwendest du es nur morgens?”: Learners mix two correct forms: “am Morgen” (in the morning) and “morgens” (in the mornings). The adverb “morgens” takes no article and is written in lower case.

Try it yourself

1. Translate into German: I often hear Moin here and do not yet know its use well.

   Show answer or example answer

   Ich höre hier oft Moin und kenne den Gebrauch noch nicht gut.

   Two main clauses joined by “und” share the subject “ich”. “Moin” is used here as a quoted word, and “den Gebrauch” (the usage) is masculine accusative.

2. Put the words in order: auch / du / es / morgens / nur / oder / später / Verwendest

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   Verwendest du es nur morgens oder auch später?

   “Verwendest du es” is a verb-first question; “es” refers to the word Moin. “Nur morgens oder auch später” contrasts two time adverbs with “nur … oder auch”.

3. Write this sentence in German: Exactly; other people may have different habits.

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   Genau, andere Personen können andere Gewohnheiten haben.

   “Genau” agrees with the previous speaker. The modal “können” sends “haben” to the end, and repeating “andere” stresses that habits vary from person to person.

Use it today

Ask someone from another German-speaking region which greeting they use with friends and which at work, then write two sentences comparing it with “Moin”.