10 ways to say 'Goodbye'​ in English (2024)

The word 'Goodbye' always sounds a bit formal to me and has a real air of finality about it. It's like you wouldn't expect to see that person who said ''Goodbye'' to you ever again. Well, maybe it's just me, but it seems so...foreboding somehow. The End. Finito.

So, I thought I'd put together 10 other ways of expressing Bye, Bye Bye, See You and whatever else gets used over and over. There are plenty more of course, and some people like other languages to do it in too like 'Auf weidersehen', 'Adios Amigos', 'Hasta la vista' (made popular by Arnold Schwartznegger in the Terminator films, and yes, sometimes with 'baby' added on to the end!) and the ever popular Italian English hybrid of 'Ciao for now', which I use frequently being as I live in Sicily.

So here goes.

1. Toodle pip! This one is cheery and old fashioned and I love it. It resides in my memory as always said by somebody grinning. Probably my grandpa or grandma or both. A variation of it is Toodle-loo, but that does sound a bit like you are going to the toilet. (Loo can mean toilet in British English, so if someone says they are going to the loo, they don't mean Waterloo.)
2. Tattie bye bye! This is old fashioned as well and likely to confuse Americans, so use it if you are with Americans and want to say bye. Watch them eye you curiously.
3. Laters. I use this a lot myself, especially in emails for some reason that I cannot justify - I don't use it in whatsapp or text messages. Some people use it on social media, and it kind of gives the feeling that the person who writes it will be back in a bit, or maybe a day or two. Not gone for long. Well, it does to me anyway.
4. Godspeed. This one has an old history as I found out. I had always thought, as a kid (with no evidence whatsoever) that it probably meant that God was speeding things up. That was it. Final. Curtains for you. The big Bye-Bye. But no, it didn't mean anything of the sort. It comes from very old English 'God spede you' which meant 'God prosper you', so it was a way of wishing people good luck as they left to go somewhere. These days some people say it as an alternative to 'Have a safe journey' when somebody is taking a plane somewhere or going on a long trip.
5. Be seein' ya. Slang for 'I'll be seeing you', which also doesn't really make a lot of sense as it is in the future continuous tense with no time mentioned. You'll be seeing me....erm... when exactly? Eh? In text language (or text speak as some prefer to call it) it gets shortened even more to BCNU. Try saying the letters separately out loud. B. C. N. U. In the same way 'See you later' becomes CUL8R with the 'L eight R' being the clever part. Cool huh?
6. If you can't be good, be careful! A whole expression here meaning I know you aren't likely to be well behaved wherever you are going, but be careful when you do whatever naughty thing you got planned. Often said with a knowing wink.
7. Keep it real. Pretty modern slang. Some people like to add 'man' or 'dude' at the end even when the phrase is directed at a woman. Should be dudette if anything, but I'm splitting hairs now. (See a sneaky idiomatic phrase here-guess what it means?)
8. I'm off. Not to be confused with 'to be a bit off' or 'totally off' as in unacceptable, rude or not very nice-it can mean that too (for example-'He was a bit off with me' or 'What she said was totally off ') No. What I mean is 'I'm off' meaning 'I'm off to do something else' in other words, I'm leaving. Think of the song in the old classic movie The Wizard of Oz when the four friends sing 'We're off to see the wizard, the wonderful wizard of Oz.' And off they went!
9. Have a good one. Yes, this a rather puzzling phrase. Have a good one. Have a good one what? Have a good what? What does 'one' refer to? Well, anything really. If somebody says it in the morning they might mean have a good morning. Or even a whole day. If someone says it to you before you have an interview, it'll mean interview. So it pretty much depends on what is coming up next.
10. Stay Safe. Last but not least is THE buzz phrase at the moment, and like any buzzwords or buzz phrases, it is wearing a bit thin (becoming a bit overused and boring). It is similar to take care of yourself, or look after yourself that we used in the good old pre-Covid days, which I have vague memories of. It will be nice to say a firm goodbye to that particular phrase when the time comes, won't it!

So.

How am I going to end this article?

What's your favorite? Write your favorite way of saying goodbye in the comment box!

Louise English Coach :-)