World Hello Day Activities: Hello in 20 Languages Word Search

Some of the best world hello day activities take less than a minute: a student walks in, a classmate says "jambo," and everyone wants to know what it means. World Hello Day turns that curiosity into a lesson on languages, geography and plain good manners, with a word search that hides "hello" in 18 languages.

The hello puzzle at the top of this page is ready for class: solve it together on the board or hand out printed copies, then use the pronunciation guide below so nobody has to guess how to say "sawubona."

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What Is World Hello Day?

World Hello Day is an annual observance on November 21 that invites people to greet at least ten others. It was started in 1973 by brothers Michael and Brian McCormack, who wanted to show that personal communication matters, and it has been marked by schools and community groups ever since.

The Harvard Crimson profiled co-founder Michael McCormack and the start of World Hello Day, including how the brothers wrote letters to leaders around the world asking them to take part.

For a classroom, the message is friendly and easy to act on: a hello is small, it costs nothing, and it works in every language on Earth.

It also fits neatly into a world languages class, an ESL group or a morning meeting. Students who speak a second language at home often get the rare chance to be the expert in the room, which is reason enough to put it on the calendar.

How Do You Say Hello in 20 Languages?

Here are 20 everyday greetings with a simple pronunciation guide. The spellings drop accent marks so they fit a word search grid; the capital letters in the guide show which part to stress.

A few notes help with accuracy. Annyeong is the casual Korean hello used with friends, while annyeonghaseyo is the polite form for adults. Ni hao is the standard Mandarin greeting, and Kia ora is a Maori greeting widely used across New Zealand.

How Do You Use the Hello Word Search in Class?

Use the word search as the warm-up, then move to speaking. Students find the 18 greetings, match each to its language from the table, and finish by saying three of them out loud to a partner. The whole routine fits in 25 minutes.

1. Print the puzzle at the top of this page, one per student, with the answer key for you.
2. Give students 10 to 12 minutes to find the greetings.
3. Project the pronunciation table and practice five greetings together.
4. Have each student circle three words they found and write the matching language next to each.
5. Finish with the greeting circle below.

Grades 2 and 3 do best with a smaller list of 10 greetings on the easy setting, where words run only across and down. Grades 4 to 6 can handle all 18 on medium. To change the list, open the word search maker, paste your greetings, and download a new PDF with its answer key.

What Other World Hello Day Activities Work for Kids?

The strongest activities get students speaking and moving. A greeting circle, a hello passport, and a scrambled-greetings round all build on the word search and take very little prep.

• Greeting circle

  Students stand in a circle. Each one greets the person on their left in a different language from the table, and the greeted student has to name the language.

• Ten hellos challenge

  Each student gets a card with ten boxes and collects a signature from every person they greet during the school day, in any language.

• Hello passport

  Students draw a small flag or map outline for each language they learn and "stamp" it after saying the greeting correctly.

• Scrambled greetings

  Jumble the greetings in the word scramble maker for a five-minute follow-up. Unscrambling BMOAJ into JAMBO sticks the spelling in memory.

• Map match

  Place each greeting on a world map. It turns a language lesson into a quick geography check.

Want one printable with everything? The Worksheet Builder can put the hello word search, a greetings scramble and a greetings fill-in on a single page with the answer key at the end.

Frequently Asked Questions

When is World Hello Day in 2026?

World Hello Day is always November 21. In 2026 it falls on a Saturday, so most schools celebrate on Friday, November 20.

What are easy world hello day activities for kids?

A hello-in-many-languages word search, a greeting circle, and a ten-hellos challenge are all easy to run. Each takes 10 to 25 minutes and needs only paper, pencils and the pronunciation table.

Why are the greetings spelled without accent marks?

Word search grids use the 26 letters A to Z, so accented letters like the one in Ola (Olá) are written without the mark. Mention the original spelling when you teach the word.

What age is the hello word search for?

The 18-word version on the medium setting suits grades 4 to 6. For grades 2 and 3, make a 10-word version on the easy setting so every greeting reads across or down.