farewell

imperative verb

fare·well | \ fer-ˈwel

Definition of farewell

(Entry 1 of 4)

: get along well —used interjectionally to or by one departing

farewell

noun

fare·well | \ fer-ˈwel

Definition of farewell (Entry 2 of 4)

1 : a wish of well-being at parting : goodbye said their farewells and headed home

2a : an act of departure : leave-taking I will take my farewell of this place tomorrow.

b : a formal occasion honoring a person about to leave or retire held a great farewell for the retiring senator

farewell

verb

fare·well | \ fer-ˈwel

Definition of farewell (Entry 3 of 4)

transitive verb

chiefly Australia and New Zealand

: to bid farewell to

farewell

adjective

fare·well | \ ˈfer-ˌwel

Definition of farewell (Entry 4 of 4)

: of or relating to leave-taking : final a farewell performance

Synonyms & Antonyms More Example Sentences Learn More about farewell

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Synonyms & Antonyms for farewell

Synonyms: Noun

adieu, au revoir, ave, bon voyage, congé (also congee), Godspeed, good-bye (or good-by)

Synonyms: Adjective

parting, valedictory

Antonyms: Noun

hello

Examples of farewell in a Sentence

Noun

They said their farewells and headed home. the exchange student and her host family said their tearful farewells, promising to keep in touch

Verb

The retiring teacher was farewelled by the whole school at a special assembly.

Adjective

The band gave a farewell concert. the singer's farewell tour seemed to last almost as long as her entire career

Recent Examples on the Web: Noun

Nearly seven years after the controversy, Isaiah returned to the Shonda Rhimes' drama to reprise his role — just as the series was getting ready to bid farewell to Sandra (by 2014, T.R. had already left the show). — Kayla Keegan, Good Housekeeping, "The True Story of Why Isaiah Washington Left 'Grey's Anatomy' and Dr. Burke Behind," 2 May 2019 Ashleigh posted on Twitter bidding farewell to the series. — Sara Delgado, Teen Vogue, "Ashleigh Murray Apparently Had Her Last "Riverdale" Episode This Week Ahead of the "Katy Keene" Spinoff," 26 Apr. 2019 Undeterred by the president and the CBP announcement, the first group of 50 Caravan members walked into the port's PedWest entrance about 4:30 p.m. on Sunday, waving farewell, as activists and fellow caravan members cheered them on. — Sandra Dibble, latimes.com, "Migrant caravan turned away at U.S. border, likely faces long wait in Mexico," 30 Apr. 2018 The actor rejoins Arrow as the series recently bid farewell to original series regular Willa Holland. — Lesley Goldberg, The Hollywood Reporter, "'Arrow': Colton Haynes Officially Returning as Season 7 Regular," 9 Apr. 2018 Onlookers in the terminal waved farewell as the plane, operated by Delta Air Lines, taxied out to the runway. — Dustin Chambers, The Seattle Times, "747 makes last bittersweet flight for a U.S. commercial airline," 27 Jan. 2018 The Warriors said a ceremonial farewell to Oracle in their final regular-season home game April 7. — Janie Mccauley, The Seattle Times, "Fresh off loss at Golden State, Clippers return for playoffs," 13 Apr. 2019 Elisabeth and Rosie sit next to each other for Barbara Walters's farewell. — Kayla Keegan, Good Housekeeping, "What Really Happened on 'The View' Between Elisabeth Hasselbeck and Rosie O'Donnell," 27 Mar. 2019 Recognizing how special William is explains why Ron doesn't want to bid farewell to him so soon. — Kayla Keegan, Good Housekeeping, "Ron Cephas Jones Isn't Ready to Say Goodbye to William," 19 Mar. 2019

Recent Examples on the Web: Adjective

Tonight's episode of Game of Thrones was a rough one for just about everyone, between the brutal death of Missandei, Jaime loving and leaving Brienne, and Jon leaving Ghost behind without so much as a farewell pet. — Emma Dibdin, Harper's BAZAAR, "Game of Thrones," 6 May 2019 Plus, that farewell smooth with Missandei (Nathalie Emmanuel) at the end of last week’s episode gave us serious Fredo vibes. — Sophie Kemp, Vogue, "Who Will Die Next on Game of Thrones, According to the Internet," 26 Apr. 2019 The sudden order to hunker down can overwhelm students, who have wept and soiled themselves, written farewell messages to family members and wills explaining what should be done with their bicycles and PlayStations. — John Woodrow Cox, The Seattle Times, "Numerous school lockdowns are traumatizing the nation’s children," 26 Dec. 2018 A thousand revelers came to the farewell party, where guests were encouraged to dress as 1920s film stars. — Lesley M.m. Blume, Town & Country, "Inside Frank Gehry's Overhaul of Garden of Allah, L.A.’s Most Infamous Corner," 25 Feb. 2019 Aptly, Obama delivers George Washington’s farewell address in the track, which also features Miranda, original Hamilton cast member Christopher Jackson, and gospel musician BeBe Winans. — Amy Mackelden, Harper's BAZAAR, "Barack Obama Appears on a New Hamilton Remix Alongside Lin-Manuel Miranda," 22 Dec. 2018 But don't worry, viewers, there's still some time to say farewell to the 51-year-old. — Jennifer Aldrich, Country Living, "'MacGyver' Actor George Eads Is Reportedly Leaving the Show," 30 Nov. 2018 Everton striker Wayne Rooney has played his last Premier League game after bidding his teammates farewell on Saturday. — SI.com, "Wayne Rooney 'Says Everton Goodbyes' Having Played Final Premier League Game Before MLS Switch," 13 May 2018 In a farewell letter to the fans, via his Instagram, Wislhere insisted that his goal was to remain a Gunner. — SI.com, "Journalist Claims Jack Wilshere Will Complete Stunning Fenerbahce Switch Following Successful Talks," 29 June 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'farewell.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.