allô

See also: allo, allos, álló, allò, allo-, and ällö

French

Alternative forms

• allo (post-1990 spelling)

Etymology

From English hello.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /a.lo/

• Audio:

  (file)

Interjection

allô

1. (telephony) hello (when answering at the beginning of a call)
2. (telephony) used to confirm that the person being addressed is listening, or to confirm if anyone is listening

   Allô? Tu m’entends? ― Hello? You hear me?

3. (North America) hello (as an in-person greeting)
4. (informal) hello! (implying someone is not paying attention to the obvious)

Usage notes

• Using "allô" as a greeting is normal in Quebec and Louisiana, but particularly rude in Europe, where it should be avoided.

Descendants

• → Hijazi Arabic: ألو
• → Persian: الو (alo)
• → Romanian: alo
• → Russian: алло́ (alló)
• → Spanish: aló
• → Turkish: alo
• → Vietnamese: a-lô

Further reading

• “allô”, in Trésor de la langue française informatisé [Digitized Treasury of the French Language], 2012.

Anagrams

• Lola