à plus tard
/a ply taʁ/
The English phrase 'bye for now' is translated into French as à plus tard.
à plus tard is used as a casual way to say goodbye when you expect to see the person again soon.
What does it mean word for word?
The phrase is composed of the preposition à (to/at), the adverb plus (more) and the adverb tard (late), literally meaning 'to more late' or 'until later'.
Which one should you use?
While à plus tard is a standard way to say 'see you later', the shortened version à plus is much more common in casual, spoken French among friends.
How do you pronounce it?
/a ply taʁ/
When do people say it?
When parting ways, you might also use the phrase On se revoit bientôt to mean 'We'll see each other soon'.
Did you know?
- In texting and online chats, French speakers often shorten à plus even further to just a+.
- The word tard is a cognate of the English word 'tardy', both descending from the Latin 'tarde'.
- The pronunciation of à plus is an exception to many standard French rules because the final 's' in 'plus' is typically pronounced in this specific farewell.
Examples in context
- On se voit tout à l'heure, à plus tard !See you in a bit, bye for now!
- Je dois partir, à plus tard.I have to go, bye for now.
- À plus tard pour le dîner !Bye for now, see you for dinner!
Example conversation
Léa and Lucas are finishing a phone call before meeting later.
- LéaD'accord, je termine mon travail et j'arrive.Okay, I'll finish my work and then I'll arrive.
- LucasParfait, je t'attends au café.Perfect, I'm waiting for you at the cafe.
- LéaÀ plus tard, Lucas !Bye for now, Lucas!
- LucasÀ plus tard, Léa.Bye for now, Léa.
Sources
- Pronunciation: Wiktionary entry à plus tard, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries plus, tard, à, CC BY-SA 4.0.
