goodbye

or good-bye

[ good-bahy ]
See synonyms for goodbye on Thesaurus.com
interjection
  1. farewell (a conventional expression used at parting).

noun,plural good·byes.
  1. a farewell.

Origin of goodbye

1
First recorded in 1565–75; contraction of God be with ye
  • Sometimes good·by, good-by .

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use goodbye in a sentence

  • Jamie Barrett, Partner, Goodby Silverstein & Partners, SF The Democratic Party.

    Yes We Could Have! | James P. Othmer | March 8, 2010 | THE DAILY BEAST
  • When the lodge excursion train had passed on toward the convention city, I hopped a freight and bade Comrade Bannerman goodby.

    The Iron Puddler | James J. Davis
  • I nodded a goodby, and settled down for my long row, a good deal longer this time on account of the ebb.

    The Rise of Roscoe Paine | Joseph C. Lincoln
  • There wives and sweethearts said goodby to the men who went “down to the sea in ships.”

  • Agnar bade goodby to Frigga and to Odin, thanking them for the care they had taken of Geirrod and himself.

    The Children of Odin | Padraic Colum
  • The young woman laughed; Clematis dried her tears, and Jim Cunneen waved his hand and said goodby.

    Clematis | Bertha B. Cobb

British Dictionary definitions for goodbye

goodbye

/ (ˌɡʊdˈbaɪ) /


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

noun
  1. a leave-taking; parting: they prolonged their goodbyes for a few more minutes

  2. a farewell: they said goodbyes to each other

Origin of goodbye

1
C16: contraction of God be with ye

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012