arrivederci e buona fortuna
The Italian phrase for "goodbye and good luck" is arrivederci e buona fortuna.
This phrase is used to say farewell to someone while wishing them success in the future.
Which one should you use?
While buona fortuna is a direct translation of "good luck", Italians also frequently use the phrase in bocca al lupo (into the mouth of the wolf) to wish someone luck.
Is there a formal and an informal way to say it?
The level of formality depends on the farewell used. Buona fortuna e arrivederci! is used to convey well-wishes while bidding farewell formally. For a casual and friendly way to say goodbye while expressing wishes for good fortune, you can use Buona fortuna e ciao! Additionally, using ciao e buona fortuna makes the farewell more informal and suitable for friends or peers.
Did you know?
- When someone says in bocca al lupo to you, the correct traditional response is not 'thank you', but rather crepi! or crepi il lupo!, meaning 'may the wolf die!'
- In a theatrical context, wishing an actor buona fortuna before a show is considered a serious jinx. Performers almost exclusively use in bocca al lupo to avoid inviting disaster.
- The word fortuna in Italian can mean both 'luck' and 'wealth'. Depending on the context, wishing someone buona fortuna could be interpreted as wishing them financial prosperity rather than just a lucky outcome.
Examples in context
- Arrivederci e buona fortuna.Goodbye and good luck.The sentence is useful for practicing the phrase arrivederci e buona fortuna.Tatoeba #860808 by Guybrush88, translation #434818 by lukaszpp
- Mi mancherai moltissimo! Ciao e in bocca al lupo!I will miss you so much! Bye and good luck!
- Divertiti nel tuo viaggio! Buona fortuna e ciao!Enjoy your trip! Good luck and bye!
- Arrivederci e buona fortuna per il nuovo lavoro.Goodbye and good luck with the new job.
- Arrivederci e buona fortuna per il tuo viaggio.Goodbye and good luck with your trip.
Example conversation
Martina is leaving her colleague Matteo on his last day of work.
- MartinaÈ stato un piacere lavorare con te, Matteo.It was a pleasure working with you, Matteo.
- MatteoGrazie, Martina, anche per te!Thanks, Martina, you too!
- MartinaOra arrivederci e buona fortuna per il futuro.Now goodbye and good luck for the future.
- MatteoGrazie mille, a presto!Thanks a lot, see you soon!
Sources
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
