au revoir monsieur
The English phrase "goodbye sir" is translated into French as au revoir monsieur.
Au revoir monsieur is a common and polite way to say "goodbye sir" in French. Depending on the situation, you might also use other formal farewells such as Bonne journée, Monsieur (have a good day, sir), Je vous souhaite une excellente journée, Monsieur (I wish you an excellent day, sir) or Prenez soin de vous, Monsieur (take care of yourself, sir).
Which one should you use?
Use au revoir monsieur when addressing a man, whereas au revoir madame is used when addressing a woman.
Is there a formal and an informal way to say it?
The addition of monsieur makes the expression formal and respectful compared to simply saying au revoir.
Did you know?
- While monsieur is used today as a polite title for any man, it was once a specific title reserved for the eldest son of the King of France.
- The phrase au revoir literally translates to 'until seeing again', framing the goodbye as a promise of a future encounter.
- The word monsieur was originally a contraction of 'my lord', combining 'mon' (my) and 'sieur' (a form of 'lord').
Examples in context
- Au revoir, monsieur. Bonne journée !Goodbye, sir. Have a good day!
- Merci beaucoup, au revoir monsieur.Thank you very much, goodbye sir.
- Bonne journée, au revoir monsieur.Have a good day, goodbye sir.
Example conversation
Manon is leaving a bakery after buying a croissant.
- ManonMerci pour le croissant.Thank you for the croissant.
- HugoJe vous en prie.You are welcome.
- ManonAu revoir monsieur.Goodbye sir.
- HugoAu revoir, madame.Goodbye, madam.
Sources
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries monsieur, revoir, CC BY-SA 4.0.
