sayonara

Etymology

Borrowed from Japanese さよなら (sayonara), shorter form of more traditional さようなら (sayōnara, “goodbye”, literally “if that's the way it is”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˌsaɪəˈnɑːɹə/
• Rhymes: -ɑːɹə

Interjection

sayonara

1. (informal, often humorous, especially used when referring to Japan) goodbye, adieu

   Synonyms: adieu, adios, arrivederci, auf Wiedersehen, au revoir, bye, bye-bye, cheerio, cheers, ciao, farewell, goodbye, good day, shalom, so long, tot ziens

Noun

sayonara (plural sayonaras)

1. An utterance of sayonara, the wishing of farewell to someone.
   • 1999, Hell to Pay, →ISBN, page 19:

     After a simply marvelous, entertaining two and a half hour meal, they reclaimed their shoes and ceremoniously bid their sayonaras to the Japanese girls.

Romanization

sayonara

1. Rōmaji transcription of さよなら

Etymology

From the Japanese さようなら (sayōnara) or さよなら (sayonara, “goodbye”), maybe by analogy with getas, the Japanese wooden clogs. Cognate with Greek σαγιονάρα (sagionára). This etymology is incomplete. You can help Wiktionary by elaborating on the origins of this term.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /saɟ͡ʝoˈnaɾa/, [saʝoˈnaɾa]

Noun

sayonara f (plural sayonaras)

1. (Peru) flip-flop, thong (Australia), jandal (New Zealand)

   Synonyms: bamba, chancla, chola, ojota, slap