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The Learning Kingdom's Cool Word of the Day for July 5, 1999
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hello [interj. hu-LOW]
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This is one of the most commonly spoken words in English. It's the
salutation that begins almost every phone conversation, and it can also be
an expression of surprise, especially in British English. Example: "When
he uncovered a perfect trilobite fossil, Professor Bains exclaimed 'Hello!
What a find!'"
As you might expect for such a common word, its origins are extremely
ancient. In Chaucer's time, the word was hallow, and by the time of
Shakespeare it was halloo. The root may have been a cry, holla (Stop!),
which probably came from Old French hola (Ho there!), a compound of ho
(ho!) and la (there).
The word was not nearly as popular before the invention of the telephone.
With telephones and the customary telephone greeting spread across the
entire planet, it is possible that "hello" is now the most widely
recognized word in any language.
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