Spoiler: the easiest way to reply to a friendly ‘adiós’ (or ‘goodbye’) in Spanish is a simple ‘adiós’ in return. However, there are many other great ways to respond that are sure to make you sound like a native speaker!
So, stick around and find out EXACTLY how to respond to ‘adiós’.
Let’s get to it!
‘Adiós’ in English
So, what exactly does ‘adiós’ mean?
Well, it’s actually a shortened version of the rather archaic phrases ‘a Dios seas’ (‘be with God’) and ‘te encomiendo a Dios’ (‘I entrust you to God’).
a Dios = to God
Nowadays the word ‘adiós’ may have lost its religious connotations, but it HAS retained the same kind sentiment: you’re parting ways with someone, either temporarily or indefinitely, so you wish them well.
Another variant of these expressions that’s also rather obsolete but has gained new connotations (some of which are pretty saucy!) is ‘vaya con Dios’ or ‘go with God’.
1 Adiós – Goodbye
Found yourself on the receiving end of an ‘adiós’?
Well, if you’re unsure what to respond, just answer back with another ‘adiós’.
Una persona se despide después una comida familiar
Mariana – ¡Adiós, familia! Gracias por todo.
Familiares – ¡Adiós, Mari! ¡Adiós! ¡Nos vemos!
A person says goodbye after a family dinner
Mariana – Goodbye, everybody! Thanks for everything.
Relatives – Bye, Mari! Goodbye! See you!
‘Adiós’ actually has a diminutive form (at least in Mexico): ‘adiosito’. However, it’s not used that much anymore, especially amongst younger generations.
2 Chao – Bye
If you visit any Latin American country, chances are you’re gonna hear people use ‘chao’ far more often than ‘adiós’.
But what (on earth!) is ‘chao’?
Well, it’s basically a derivative of the Italian, ‘ciao’!
Watch out though as ‘ciao’ in Italian is used BOTH as a greeting and a farewell, whereas ‘chao’ is ONLY used to say goodbye!
Pamela – ¡Adiós, querida! Te hablo cuando llegue.
Berenice – Sí, por favor avísame. ¡Chao, amiga!
Pamela – Goodbye, dear! I’ll call you when I get there.
Berenice – Yeah, please do. Bye, sis!
3 Hasta luego – See you later
‘Hasta luego’ literally translates to ‘until later’, but it’s actually the Spanish equivalent of ‘see you later’.
It’s a very polite way to end a conversation, so it might seem a bit TOO formal for close friends or family.
It is though a good alternative to ‘chao’ in more formal situations.
En una reunión de trabajo
Gabriel – Adiós, Lic. Sánchez, fue un gusto.
Karla – El gusto es mío, Ing.* Britos. Hasta luego.
At a working meeting
Gabriel – Goodbye, Ms. Sanchez, nice meeting you.
Karla – Nice to meet you too, Mr. Britos. See you later.
* Erika’s note – In Spanish you’ll often hear people – especially in business – address each other by their academic title AND their surname.
Common titles include: ‘licenciado’ (a ‘licensed graduate’), ‘arquitecto’ (an ‘architect’), and ‘ingeniero’ (an ‘engineer’). Their respective abbreviations are ‘Lic.’, ‘Arq.’, and ‘Ing.’.
4 Hasta mañana – See you tomorrow
You can get even more specific about the time you’ll see your interlocutor again by using phrases such as ‘hasta mañana’ (‘see you tomorrow’), etc.
Rolando – Bueno, me retiro antes de que se haga tarde. ¡Adiós!
Carolina – ¿Cuál adiós?* ¡Hasta mañana!
Rolando – Ah, es cierto; te veo en la fiesta de mañana.
Rolando – Well, I’m off before it gets late. Bye!
Carolina – Don’t say “adios”! I’ll see you tomorrow!
Rolando – Ah, that’s right; I’ll see you at the party tomorrow.
*Erika’s top tip – Don’t be surprised if ‘adiós’ seems a bit too indefinite or final to some people, especially if you’ll see each other again soon.
5 Nos vemos – See you around
‘Nos vemos’ (or literally ‘we see each other’ in English) is the Spanish equivalent of ‘see you’ or ‘see you around’.
It’s EXTREMELY common and slightly less formal than ‘hasta luego’, so you’ll definitely hear it used amongst friends and family. It´s also polite enough to use in formal conversations.
En la escuela
Mónica – ¡Adiós, Sebas! Suerte en el partido.
Sebastián – ¡Gracias, Mon! Nos vemos.
At school
Monica – Bye, Sebas! Good luck in the match.
Sebastian – Thank you, Mon! See you around.
6 Cuídate – Take care
‘Cuídate’ (‘take care’ in English) and ‘cuídate mucho’ (‘take good care of yourself’) are great responses to ‘adiós’ if you wanna show a bit of affection to your interlocutor.
Después de visitar a los padres
Gibrán – Adiós, Mámá, Papá.
Amanda – Cuídate, corazón.
After visiting the parents
Gibran – Goodbye, Mom, Dad.
Amanda – Take care, sweetheart.
7 Que te vaya bien – Farewell / Take care
‘Que te vaya bien’ is another extremely popular way of saying ‘goodbye’ in Spanish.
If we were to translate this phrase literally, we’d get something the likes of ‘(I hope) things go well for you’.
But fear not, it doesn’t sound anywhere near as ceremonious in Spanish … it’s actually a rather informal – albeit polite – way of bidding someone farewell.
You can also use the more formal ‘que le vaya bien’!
Dos vecinos se despiden
Liliana – ¡Adiós, Don Joaquín!
Joaquín – ¡Que te vaya bien, Lily! Salúdame a tus papás.
Two neighbors say goodbye
Liliana – Goodbye, Don Joaquín!
Joaquín – Take care, Lily! Say hi to your parents for me.
8 Que tengas buen día / buena semana – Have a nice day / week
Finally, you can also respond to ‘adiós’ by wishing your interlocutor a good day or week. Use ‘que tengas buen día’ if you want to say ‘have a nice day’, or ‘que tengas una buena semana’ for ‘have a nice week’.
You can also mix things up a bit by throwing in a day of the week (e.g., ‘martes’, jueves’, etc.) or a specific time of day –
¡Que tengas buena tarde!
Have a nice evening!
Que tengas buen martes.
Have a nice Tuesday.
Final thoughts
So, there you have it, quite a few different ways to reply to ‘adiós’ in Spanish (and sound like a true native speaker in the process!).
Ready to level up your conversational skills even further? Then don’t miss our list of all the different ways to say ‘never mind’ in Spanish!
¡Hasta la próxima!