再见 (zàijiàn)

再见 means "goodbye" or "see you." It is the universal farewell in Mandarin, used when parting from someone regardless of when you expect to meet again.

Meanings

[phrase] Goodbye; see you; farewell.

Example Sentences

再见！明天见！ Zàijiàn! Míngtiān jiàn! Goodbye! See you tomorrow!

老师再见！ Lǎoshī zàijiàn! Goodbye, teacher!

A: 再见！ B: 再见！路上小心！ A: Zàijiàn! B: Zàijiàn! Lùshàng xiǎoxīn! A: Goodbye! B: Goodbye! Take care on the way!

时间不早了，我先走了，再见！ Shíjiān bù zǎo le, wǒ xiān zǒu le, zàijiàn! It is getting late, I will head off first — goodbye!

Usage Notes

再见 is made up of 再 (again) + 见 (see/meet), literally meaning "see you again." It is suitable for any farewell situation, from ending a casual chat to leaving a formal meeting. More specific time-based goodbyes are also common: 明天见 (míngtiān jiàn, see you tomorrow), 周末见 (zhōumò jiàn, see you this weekend), 回头见 (huítóu jiàn, see you later / talk soon). The response to 再见 is simply 再见 in return. In phone conversations, the standard ending is 再见 or 拜拜 (bài bài, a casual transliteration of "bye-bye").

Collocations or Common Phrases

Phrase	Meaning
明天见	see you tomorrow
回头见	see you later
周末见	see you this weekend
拜拜	bye-bye (casual)
一路平安	have a safe journey

Memory Hook

再见 = again (再) + see (见) — the hope embedded in every farewell is that you will see each other again.