Etymograph

English

bye

Bye is a shortened form of goodbye.

  1. English1500–presentgoodbye1
  2. Englishearliest quotation 1655bye1

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed deepest recorded ancestor

  1. 1 Wiktionary, English bye
  2. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1655, Thomas Fuller, The Church-history of Britain; […]: “The Synod of Dort in some points condemneth, upon…”.

Lineage

  1. English1500–presentgoodbyeWiktionary, English bye
  2. Englishearliest quotation 1655byeWiktionary, English bye. Earliest quotation in Wiktionary’s entry: 1655, Thomas Fuller, The Church-history of Britain; […]: “The Synod of Dort in some points condemneth, upon…”

Linked words

through Proto-Indo-European *h₁éps

evening, 5 more

through Proto-Indo-European *h₁épi ‘on, at’

even, epic, 8 more

through Old English bī ‘being near’

by, 1 more

Today it means

noun The position of a person or team in a tournament or competition who draws no opponent in a particular round so advances to the next round unopposed, or is awarded points for a win in a league table; also the phantom opponent of such a person or team.

Sources

Sources: Wiktionary, “bye”. By Wiktionary contributors, CC BY-SA 4.0, via kaikki.org (dump of Oct 3 2026); text adapted and restructured. Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word. License.

Etymograph / English goodbye / bye

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