goodbye

American  

[good-bahy] / ˌgʊdˈbaɪ /

Sometimes goodby, or good-bye

interjection

1. farewell (a conventional expression used at parting).

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noun

plural

goodbyes

1. a farewell.

goodbye British  

/ ˌɡʊdˈbaɪ /

1. farewell: a conventional expression used at leave-taking or parting with people and at the loss or rejection of things or ideas

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noun

1. a leave-taking; parting

   they prolonged their goodbyes for a few more minutes

2. a farewell

   they said goodbyes to each other

Etymology

Origin of goodbye

First recorded in 1565–75; contraction of God be with ye

Explanation

Goodbye is a parting word, something you say to other people when you're leaving. You might say goodbye to all your favorite teachers on your last day of high school. A goodbye means that someone's departing: you say goodbye to your parents when you go off to college, and you also say goodbye to guests when they leave after a visit. The original goodbye, dating from the 1570s, was godbwye, which was a contraction of the farewell phrase "God be with ye!"

Example Sentences

It means "forget me not" in the Sesotho language and is also used to say goodbye.

From Barron's • Apr. 10, 2026

Stadio Olimpico welcomed Totti as a 16-year-old debutant in 1993 and worshipped him until a tearful goodbye aged 40.

From BBC • Apr. 6, 2026

“We’re feeling the AGI here,” host John Coogan said with a smile, before saluting goodbye to Fidji Simo, OpenAI’s newly annointed chief executive of applications.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 3, 2026

“What can I say? Live TV,” host Jude Law told the audience during the show’s goodbye sequence that night.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 2, 2026

Lou Ann grunts her agreement, so I do a quick “nutty up, nutty down” goodbye and scoot outside before Lou Ann changes her mind.

From "The Tenth Mistake of Hank Hooperman" by Gennifer Choldenko

Related Words

• adieu
• bye-bye