bye

1 of 2

noun

plural byes ˈbīz How to pronounce bye (audio)
: the position of a participant in a tournament who advances to the next round without playing
drew a first-round bye

bye

2 of 2

interjection

used as a shortened form of goodbye to express farewell
When he finally spoke, though, and said, "Bye, I'll call you," instead of disappointment she had felt an enormous rush of relief—a feeling, she thinks now, of things falling back into place.Ann Packer
The stag lowered his head and raised it again. He blew out a frosty puff of air, then leaped away, vanishing into the mist. "Bye," Annie said wistfully.Mary Pope Osborne
"Bye, Mom! Bye, Auggie!" I kissed them both quickly and headed toward the door.R. J. Palacio

Examples of bye in a Sentence

Noun She got a bye into the second round of the tennis tournament.
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Noun
After a week of North Carolina and Bill Belichick facing serious drama during their bye, the 2-3 program is getting set to travel to play California on Friday night. Jordan Sigler, MSNBC Newsweek, 13 Oct. 2025 Austin Mock’s Playoff projections now have Indiana and Texas Tech landing top-four byes. Alex Kirshner, New York Times, 12 Oct. 2025
Interjection
Two weeks after an upset loss to visiting Cal Poly and a week after having a off-night bye to think about a season that could go either way, Sacramento State delivered a resounding 55-27 victory over Weber State on Saturday night in chilly Ogden, Utah. Joe Davidson, Sacbee.com, 12 Oct. 2025 As Jonathan Jones of CBS Sports pointed out, Belichick was busy hitting the recruiting trail during North Carolina's bye week, suggesting the head coach is still looking for talent to help the Tar Heels beyond this season. Jordan Sigler, MSNBC Newsweek, 11 Oct. 2025 See All Example Sentences for bye

Word History

Etymology

Noun

alteration of by entry 2

First Known Use

Noun

1883, in the meaning defined above

Interjection

1618, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of bye was in 1618

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Cite this Entry

“Bye.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/bye. Accessed 18 Oct. 2025.

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