totsiens
/tɔt͡siːns/
Goodbye in Afrikaans is totsiens. Wiktionary also lists tot siens.
Meaning: farewell (intj)
Ways to say it
| Afrikaans | IPA |
|---|---|
| totsiens | /tɔt͡siːns/ |
| tot siens |
The phrase is used to express farewell.
What does it mean word for word?
The phrase tot siens is a combination of tot, meaning until and siens, meaning seeing or sight.
Which one should you use?
The single word totsiens is the most common way to write the phrase, although it is derived from the two-word version tot siens.
Is there a formal and an informal way to say it?
Totsiens is the standard, polite way to say goodbye in most social and professional settings. It is considered a formal way to say goodbye. For an even more formal sense of farewell, one might use Vaarwel.
How does it change in a sentence?
The single word totsiens is the most common written form of the phrase.
How do you pronounce it?
/tɔtsiːns/
Did you know?
- In many Afrikaans-speaking regions, you might hear people use 'totsiens' as a polite way to end a phone call, even though you cannot actually see the person.
- The root of totsiens comes from the Dutch 'ziens', making it a linguistic sibling to the English word 'vision'.
- The word totsiens is actually a shortened version of the longer phrase tot weersiens, which means 'until we see each other again'.
Examples in context
- TotsiensGoodbye.This example shows the standalone use of totsiens.Tatoeba #13458249 by Pietpetoors, translation #2591566 by tanay
- Dankie en totsiens!Thank you and goodbye!This example shows how to use totsiens alongside a thank you.Tatoeba #4877481 by zvzuibqx, translation #4877445 by jshholland
- Ek wil "tot siens" en "dankie" in Esperanto sê. Kan jy my help?I'd like to say "goodbye" and "thank you" in Esperanto. Can you help me out?This example uses the two-word form tot siens.Tatoeba #1758666 by wwkudu, translation #1735053 by al_ex_an_der
- Totsiens, Meneer Smith. Dit was heerlik om u te ontmoet.Goodbye, Mr. Smith. It was delightful to meet you.
- Ons waardeer u besoek aan ons kantoor. Vaarwel!We appreciate your visit to our office. Farewell!
- Totsiens, my vriend! Sien jou binnekort weer.Goodbye, my friend! See you soon.
Example conversation
Stefan and Liezel are leaving a cafe.
- StefanDit was lekker om jou te sien, Liezel.It was nice to see you, Liezel.
- LiezelJa, dit was baie lekker. Totsiens, Stefan!Yes, it was very nice. Goodbye, Stefan!
- StefanTotsiens! Sien jou gou weer.Goodbye! See you again soon.
- LiezelSien jou later!See you later!
Sources
- Wiktionary, “goodbye” translations and entries totsiens, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries tot, totsiens, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
