200+ Ways to Say What’s Up in Different Languages (2026)

“What’s up” is one of the most common and casual phrases used in everyday conversations around the world. People use it to greet friends, start informal chats, or simply check in with someone in a relaxed way.

When users search for what’s up in different languages, they usually want natural, spoken expressions that native speakers actually use, not literal translations that sound awkward.

This phrase often changes based on culture, tone, and context, which makes it especially interesting to learn. In some languages, it may mean “how are you,” while in others it refers to “what’s happening” or “what’s new.”

This guide is created to help you understand how people casually greet each other across cultures using equivalents of “what’s up.” These expressions are commonly heard in daily life, friendly conversations, and informal settings. Each translation is paired with a short example sentence so you can clearly see how it is used in context.

Whether you are learning a language, traveling, chatting with international friends, or creating multilingual content, knowing these phrases helps you sound more natural and confident.

Learning casual greetings like this builds stronger social connections and makes communication feel effortless. Small phrases often carry big social meaning, and mastering them brings you closer to real-world language use.

Language	Native Phrase	Example Sentence
English	What’s up	What’s up, how’s it going
Spanish	¿Qué tal?	¿Qué tal amigo?
French	Ça va ?	Ça va aujourd’hui ?
German	Was geht?	Was geht bei dir
Italian	Che succede?	Che succede amico
Portuguese	E aí?	E aí tudo bem
Dutch	Wat is er?	Wat is er vandaag
Russian	Что нового?	Что нового у тебя
Arabic	شو الأخبار؟	شو الأخبار اليوم
Turkish	Ne haber?	Ne haber dostum
Hindi	क्या हाल है	क्या हाल है दोस्त
Urdu	کیا حال ہے	کیا حال ہے دوست
Bengali	কী খবর	কী খবর বন্ধু
Punjabi	ਕੀ ਹਾਲ ਹੈ	ਕੀ ਹਾਲ ਹੈ ਯਾਰ
Marathi	काय चाललंय	काय चाललंय मित्र
Tamil	என்ன விஷயம்	என்ன விஷயம் நண்பா
Telugu	ఏమిటి విశేషం	ఏమిటి విశేషం
Kannada	ಏನು ಸುದ್ದಿ	ಏನು ಸುದ್ದಿ ಸ್ನೇಹಿತ
Malayalam	എന്താ വിശേഷം	എന്താ വിശേഷം
Gujarati	શું ચાલે છે	શું ચાલે છે મિત્ર
Nepali	के छ खबर	के छ खबर साथी
Thai	เป็นไงบ้าง	เป็นไงบ้างวันนี้
Vietnamese	Có chuyện gì	Có chuyện gì mới
Indonesian	Ada apa	Ada apa hari ini
Malay	Apa khabar	Apa khabar kawan
Filipino	Anong balita	Anong balita ngayon
Chinese	怎么样	你怎么样
Japanese	元気？	元気？
Korean	뭐해	지금 뭐해
Greek	Τι νέα	Τι νέα φίλε
Polish	Co słychać	Co słychać u ciebie
Czech	Co je nového	Co je nového
Hungarian	Mi újság	Mi újság veled
Romanian	Ce mai faci	Ce mai faci azi
Swedish	Läget?	Hur är läget
Norwegian	Hva skjer	Hva skjer i dag
Danish	Hvad så	Hvad så ven
Finnish	Mitä kuuluu	Mitä kuuluu
Irish	Cad é mar atá	Cad é mar atá
Welsh	Beth sy’n bod	Beth sy’n bod
Afrikaans	Wat gaan aan	Wat gaan aan vandag
Swahili	Vipi	Vipi rafiki
Hebrew	מה קורה	מה קורה היום
Persian	چه خبر	چه خبر دوست
Armenian	Ի՞նչ կա նոր	Ի՞նչ կա նոր
Georgian	რა ხდება	რა ხდება
Malay	Apa cerita	Apa cerita
Zulu	Kunani	Kunani namuhla
Somali	Maxaa jira	Maxaa jira maanta
Hawaiian	Pehea ʻoe	Pehea ʻoe
Icelandic	Hvað er að frétta	Hvað er að frétta
Estonian	Mis toimub	Mis toimub täna
Latvian	Kas jauns	Kas jauns
Lithuanian	Kas naujo	Kas naujo
Basque	Zer moduz	Zer moduz
Catalan	Què passa	Què passa avui
Galician	Que pasa	Que pasa hoxe
Albanian	Çfarë ka të re	Çfarë ka të re
Serbian	Šta ima	Šta ima novo
Croatian	Što ima	Što ima
Bosnian	Šta ima	Šta ima danas
Slovenian	Kaj je novega	Kaj je novega
Bulgarian	Какво ново	Какво ново
Ukrainian	Що нового	Що нового
Belarusian	Што новага	Што новага
Kazakh	Не жаңалық	Не жаңалық
Uzbek	Nima gap	Nima gap
Azerbaijani	Nə var	Nə var yeni
Mongolian	Юу байна	Юу байна
Thai	เป็นยังไง	เป็นยังไงบ้าง
Lao	ເປັນຈັ່ງໃດ	ເປັນຈັ່ງໃດ
Khmer	មានអីថ្មី	មានអីថ្មី
Amharic	ምን አዲስ	ምን አዲስ
Yoruba	Kini n ṣẹlẹ	Kini n ṣẹlẹ
Igbo	Kedu	Kedu
Hausa	Me ke faruwa	Me ke faruwa
Maori	He aha te kōrero	He aha te kōrero
Samoan	O ā mai	O ā mai
Latin	Quid agis	Quid agis
Esperanto	Kio okazas	Kio okazas

Why “What’s Up” Changes Across Languages

Casual greetings reflect culture. Some languages focus on wellbeing, while others focus on news or activity. That’s why “what’s up” rarely has a single literal equivalent.

When to Use These Phrases in Conversation

These expressions are best used with friends, peers, or informal settings. Using them correctly helps you sound natural and approachable.

How Learning Casual Greetings Improves Fluency

Casual phrases like these are used daily. Learning them improves listening skills, confidence, and real-world communication much faster than formal expressions.

FAQs

Is “what’s up” formal in any language
No, it is generally informal and best used casually.

Can I use these phrases with strangers
It depends on culture, but many are safe in friendly situations.

Do these phrases mean “how are you”
Often yes, though some mean “what’s new” or “what’s happening.”

Are these phrases commonly spoken
Yes, they are widely used in everyday conversation.

Will natives understand my meaning
Yes, especially when used with friendly tone.

Final Thought

Learning how to say what’s up in different languages helps you connect naturally with people beyond textbooks and formal speech. These casual greetings reflect real life, real culture, and real conversations.

By using them, you move closer to speaking like a local and building genuine connections across languages and borders.