Salut … Saw-loo… Hi

It is all too tempting to move from the formal Bonjour to the cool, yeah-I-am-so-French-that-I-know-slang, Salut. Unfortunately, more often than not, saying salut marks you as the opposite.  As it has been pointed out many times before, we are very informal in North America and saying hi is considered to be the equivalent of hello in many, if not all situations.  In French, salut has a specific place, mostly in the schoolyard or at a BBQ on a sunny afternoon.  It would be considered quite inappropriate to say salut in most other situations, especially by an Anglophone who already has the entirely underserved, in my humble opinion, reputation of being uncouth.  Salut is word that you should teach your kids or use to greet kids.  It is also used between close friends.  It is not an appropriate way of addressing an elder, anyone in a relationship requiring any smidgeon of respect or your drycleaner.  Saw-loo is pronounced by putting equal emphasis on both syllables.  

Bonjour …. Bohn-joor … Hello

This might seem like an obvious word to start with.  Bonjour is, after all, the first word that most people know, even those who have never attended a single second of French classes.  So its pronunciation, as you probably all know, sounds like bohn (as in Bon Jovi) joor (as in the Rock Tour). What is important to know about the word bonjour is what follows it.

In English, it would sound very formal to say “Hello Sir” to your neighbor or “Hello Madam” to your butcher, but in French, this is expected.  In fact, it is considered impolite if you simply say “Bonjour” as you walk into a store (and even more discourteous if you walk in without saying anything!).  In most French speaking areas, it is a good idea to say Madame, Monsieur and yes, even Mademoiselle, after Bonjour.  Interestingly enough, you don’t, however, say their last name even if you know it. Unlike the English-speaking world, addressing a young unmarried woman as a Mademoiselle is not considered offensive and there is no equivalent yet for the title Ms. in English.
Funnily enough, in very formal situations, many Frenchies will leave out the bonjour and simply say Monsieur or Madame as a way of saying hello.  Saying (or not saying, but implying it) hello is such an essential part of life that you will often hear people say bonjour as they walk into a restaurant (not McDonald’s, but any somewhat formal eating establishment) or even a bus.