Ways to say it
| Mandarin | Romanization (Wiktionary) |
|---|---|
| 拜拜 | bàibài, bāibái, báibái |
| 再見 / 再见 | zàijiàn |
| 再會 / 再会 | zàihuì |
| 回見 / 回见 | huíjiàn |
The most common and formal way to say goodbye is 再見 / 再见, which literally means "see you again". For a very casual, colloquial approach, you can use the loanword 拜拜, which is equivalent to the English "bye-bye". In digital contexts, you may see the slang 88, used because the numbers 88 (bābā) sound similar to the phonetic transcription of 拜拜. Other phrases include 再會 / 再会 and 回見 / 回见, as well as 走啦, an informal phrase meaning "I'm leaving" or "I'm off".
What does it mean word for word?
The phrase 再見 consists of 再 (again) and 見 (to see).
Which one should you use?
再見 is more standard and can be used in both formal and neutral contexts, whereas 拜拜 is strictly informal. While 再見 literally means "see you again", the slang 88 is used as internet slang for 'bye bye' because the numbers 88 (bābā) sound similar to the phonetic transcription of 拜拜.
Is there a formal and an informal way to say it?
拜拜 is an informal way to say bye, equivalent to 'bye-bye' in English. 拜拜 is a colloquial loanword from English used primarily in casual settings. Adding the particle 啦 to 再见 makes it more casual and is used among friends.
Is it said differently in some regions?
In Taiwan or Hong Kong, people may use 掰掰 instead of 拜拜.
How do you pronounce it?
bàibài, bāibái, báibái
When do people say it?
The number 88 is used as internet slang for 'bye bye' because the numbers 88 (bābā) sound similar to the phonetic transcription of 拜拜.
Did you know?
- Instead of a formal goodbye, it is common in China to say 慢走 'walk slowly' to express a wish for the other person's safety on their way home.
- While 拜拜 sounds like the English 'bye-bye', it is also a homophone for the traditional word for 'worship' or 'pay respects' to a deity or ancestor.
- The informal 拜拜 was adopted into Mandarin through phono-semantic matching, meaning characters were chosen that both sounded like 'bye-bye' and fit the language's structure.
Examples in context
- 拜拜！Bye!This example shows how to use the informal 拜拜.Tatoeba #1746537 by kaenif, translation #647456 by Hans07
- 再见！Goodbye!
- 那就先拜拜了。Nà jiù xiān bàibài le.Well, bye for now.
- 快点回家，拜拜！Kuài diǎn huí jiā, bàibài!Go home quickly, bye!
- 1 more sentence on Tatoeba
Example conversation
A man and a woman are finishing a phone call.
- 志强 Zhiqiang我想先去睡了。Wǒ xiǎng xiān qù shuì le.I want to go to sleep now.
- 欣怡 Xinyi好的，志强，拜拜！Hǎo de, Zhìqiáng, bàibài!Okay, Zhiqiang, bye!
- 志强 Zhiqiang明天再联系。Míngtiān zài liánxì.Let's contact each other tomorrow.
- 欣怡 Xinyi拜拜，晚安。Bàibài, wǎn'ān.Bye, good night.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “bye” translations, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries 拜拜, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
