Talk:hi there

I have been under the impression that often when a person says, "Hi, there." it is a kind of condescending phrase meant by the speaker to mean hi there you over there I am speaking to you from a position of superiority. It does somewhat depend on how it is said and the tone of voice used.


 * Interesting interpretation, but I’ve never felt it as condescending, just colloquial. I guess that any informal language can potentially feel condescending depending on the context, but I’m not certain. --Romanophile (talk) 15:05, 14 December 2014 (UTC)

Vietnamese
Given our definition and the comments above, we might want to look at changing  the Vietnamese entry for this phrase ... if you click the link and then circle back you go from an  informal greeting to  a formal one. I agree that saying "hi there" to e.g. an interviewer during a job application would be at best a minor faux pas, and at worst could cost the applicant a job. It is not always condescending, but it is always informal. — Soap — 12:12, 30 July 2020 (UTC)