How do you greet people?

[lennolin]

Do you handshake, kiss on cheek, 2 kiss on cheek?
I'm socially awkward but watching come dine with me seems English are supposed to do 2 kisses. I thought that was French. What are the rules in UK now ?

Depends who it is really; I hug my friends, sometimes a kiss although more of a kiss noise next to their face than an actual kiss

I would follow the lead of the person you’re meeting if you’re not sure op

I shake hands when meeting someone for the first time eg you wouldn't hug/kiss a potential employer at a job interview
When meeting new friends I usually take their lead but generally shake hands. People I know well and close friends I hug and kiss.

Pre covid, professionally: a handshake.
Post covid, professionally: "hi" & awkward wave

Personally: say hi (possibly with awkward wave)

Hugs reserved for very few close people & the right occasion.

This does not sit well with some people. I have mightily offended people who think I should be proffering abundant hugs, praise & flattery.

But 90% of the time it's ok.

I do not do fake hugs for strangers or cheek kissing. Ever. (Except animals, they get the works!)

I don't do two kisses (unless it's obvious the other person is planning to). One kiss and a hug for close friends.

I'm not from the Uk so I don't know your usual standards but general greetings here are (depending on the person/situation)

Hugs
kisses (hugs are probably more common than kisses though, again depends on circumstances)
Handshakes
Hello
Hi
Hey how ya goin'
G'day

not necessarily in that order.

As others have said Covid has changed a lot of things and I think as a society we're more aware of how germs can spread so people are a bit more apprehensive about kissing each other.

From the north of England here:
"Hiah y'allright?"
"Yeah y'allright?"
Occasionally hug close friends and family.

You'd be laughed out of town if you kissed someone's cheek on the street 😂

Depends on who they are. And the situation.

a friend I would hug. My or someone at work I generally wouldn’t. Though I did hug my HT director the other week when I was with her and she received news of a bereavement. We are on friendly terms though.

I would never kiss someone during an introduction. I might not shake hands if it’s a casual meeting. A simple ‘hello is nice to meet you’.

I don’t know anyone who kisses both cheeks.

If it's a formal setting (job interview etc), then a handshake
Best friend gets a hug
Everybody else gets a "G'day".
Nobody, under any circumstances gets a kissed on the cheeks.

I just say hello.

This! Handshake in work situations. Friends just say hello or the alternative Northern greeting of “now then”. A couple of old work friends I will hug or people I’ve not seen for a long time. A very posh colleague at work who id not seen for ages went in for a one cheek kiss, I moved my face in panic and got his face with the corner of my specs.

My response was in reply to this post.

In the US we don’t kiss. Unless of course from a cultural background that does. However outside of that you greet with a hug if you’re on that level.

I am only commenting to let you know that whatever your comfort level is… the answer.

if you don’t know what to do than ask. And if you don’t feel like kissing or whatever don’t do it.

the point of a greeting like that is to let the person feel welcome. You can do that however you feel comfortable.

If there are rules about these things they don’t really apply “out in the wild”. I would say a double kiss is upper class or for people who wish they were upper class - it’s a bit theatrical. A single kiss on the cheek is much more common. I think in my situation the setting is relevant as well as my relationship to the person. I work with a bunch of blokes that I don’t see very often. If I saw them in the office I would just say hello but if I see them in the pub they will all kiss me on the cheek. I surprised one by kissing him on the cheek so I assumed we weren’t going to have that in our greeting arsenal then the last time we met he surprised me with a kiss on the cheek. So I guess we do.
Friends you see frequently would be just be a verbal greeting “alright” unless they are huggers. You’ll know if you’ve got a hugger. It’s all socially acceptable and prone to change according to mood so I wouldn’t get anxious about it.

The whole thing makes me uncomfortable. I'm fairly reserved and can do without being pounced on. I have an acquaintance who loves to kiss on the cheek every single time we meet. I just brace myself now, because it could be in the supermarket, in the street - literally anywhere! She knows i don't like it but does it anyway.
I find it awkward with large gatherings. Who to kiss/hug? Saying goodbye can take ages if everyone has to kiss everyone. Where does it stop? I hug and kiss my mum, DH and my adult children with ease.
I love a hug but will always ask first.
Perfectly happy to shake hands or just say hello.
Arghhhhh!

I prefer to just say hello enthusiastically with a big smile but if they go in for a hug or air kisses then I’ll go with it but I never initiate that.

One kiss for family. Big hug maybe a kiss for people I haven’t seen for ages. Hello for people I see regularly. Two or three kisses for foreign friends if that’s what they do