goodbye
Americaninterjection
noun
noun
-
a leave-taking; parting
they prolonged their goodbyes for a few more minutes
-
a farewell
they said goodbyes to each other
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
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
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Plus, a guide to the far-flung base camps, a final goodbye to Messi and Ronaldo and hot takes from soccer’s loudest star.
From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 12, 2026
Showrunner Russell T Davies also confirmed he will leave the long-running programme, writing on Instagram that it is "goodbye from me but hello to a big new future for the show".
From BBC • Jun. 10, 2026
Around the time Williams picked up her Beverly Hills abode, she was ready to bid goodbye to her home in the Bel-Air neighborhood.
From MarketWatch • Jun. 8, 2026
Still, “Time and Water” collapses the notion that we are somehow separate from these ancient, essential formations: an encouraging hello to the future from inside a sobering goodbye.
From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 5, 2026
Instead I have to untangle all my feelings right now, and figure out how to transform them into a goodbye.
From "The Brightwood Code" by Monica Hesse
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
