toodle-oo

[ tood-l-oo ]

interjection

, Informal.

1. goodbye; so long:

   Toodle-oo, and I'll catch you all later today.

toodle-oo

/ ˌtuːdəˈluː /

sentence substitute

1. informal.
   goodbye

Word History and Origins

Origin of toodle-oo¹

First recorded in 1905–10; of disputed origin; perhaps an elaboration of toot ¹( def ); perhaps toodle (variant of dialectal tootle “to toddle”; toddle ( def ) ) + -oo, interjection; perhaps a corruption of French à tout à l'heure “see you later,” literally, “to everything at the hour” ( à la ( def ), tout ensemble ( def ), hour ( def ) )

Word History and Origins

Origin of toodle-oo¹

C20: perhaps imitative of the horn of a car

Example Sentences

However, toodle-oo—sailor, beware, and all that sort of thing!

From Project Gutenberg

Related Words

• adieu
• bye-bye