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Glite Dictionary
👋 A goodbye 👋 To say goodbye
so long

so long

52 7.6
A casual spoken goodbye said when you leave someone
  • idiom
  • /soʊ lɔŋ/
  • Informal
translation icon : adiós
  • So long, kid.

Examples

Synonyms

see ya
vsso long
  • Texting
∞ 8.4

A friendly way to say goodbye when you expect to meet again

is informal but can be used without promise of meeting again
goodbye
vsso long
∞ 1.0

Words people say when they leave each other

is informal and shorter, used casually rather than polite formality
bye
vsso long
  • Informal
306 1.0

A short word or action people use when they leave each other

is the same informal parting phrase but more idiomatic and lengthy
bye-bye
vsso long
  • Informal
279 1.1

A friendly informal way to say goodbye when leaving

is informal too but more neutral adult casual
farewell
vsso long
199 1.9

A speech or action that says goodbye and wishes someone well

is informal casual leave-taking rather than formal or solemn goodbye
adios
vsso long
  • Informal
34 7.2

A word people use to say goodbye

is informal English phrasing rather than a loanword farewell
adieu
vsso long
  • Literature
24 9.3

A final goodbye you say when leaving for a long time

is informal casual goodbye for everyday short partings rather than permanent leave
ta ta for now
vsso long
  • UK
9.5

A friendly informal way to say goodbye when you will see or speak to someone soon

is informal but more general parting without explicit return timing

Antonyms

hello
9 1.0

A short greeting you say when you meet someone or answer the phone

Surface Forms

so long main

Morphology

so + long

Although the constituents 'so' (to such an extent) and 'long' (for a great length of time) are individually transparent, the use of 'so long' as an informal farewell is a conventionalized pragmatic meaning not directly deducible from the literal phrase. The literal sense ('for a long time') gives a partial clue linking to parting but does not reliably predict the goodbye function for a B1 learner without prior exposure.

Etymology

So long may come from an older use of the words so and long, which together meant 'for a long time' or 'until then'. People would say it like 'until we meet again', and it became a short, casual way to say 'goodbye'.