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How to Say ‘Goodbye, ma'am, have a nice day.’ in French

Au revoir, madame, bonne journée.

oh ruh-VWAR mah-DAHM bun zhoor-NAY

[oh ruh-VWAR mah-DAHM bun zhoor-NAY]

🇫🇷 In France: Adding madame or monsieur with no surname is ordinary French politeness, not stiff. Leaving an interview, this is exactly how to say goodbye to the interviewer or the receptionist on your way out.

Phrase Breakdown

Au revoir, madame,

oh ruh-VWAR mah-DAHM

Goodbye, ma'am,

This is a formal goodbye. Stress lightly falls on the last syllable: 'ma-DAM'.

Example

Au revoir, madame, merci.

Goodbye, ma'am, thank you.

Words in this phrase

[oh]

until the (part of goodbye)

Contraction of 'à le'; in 'au revoir' it forms part of the fixed farewell.

Example

Au revoir, à demain !

Goodbye, see you tomorrow!

revoir

[ruh-VWAR]

goodbye

A phrase used when parting from someone.

Example

Il dit toujours 'revoir' après chaque appel téléphonique.

He always says 'goodbye' after each phone call.

madame

[mah-DAHM]

madam, Mrs.

Polite way to address a woman, e.g. a teacher.

Example

Merci, madame.

Thank you, madam.

bonne journée.

bun zhoor-NAY

have a good day.

'Bonne' is feminine to match 'journée'. Say 'bun zhoor-nay'.

Example

Merci, bonne journée !

Thanks, have a good day!

Words in this phrase

bonne

[bun]

good

Feminine form of 'bon'.

Example

Bonne nuit !

Good night!

journée

[zhoor-NAY]

day

A day seen as a span of time and activity.

Example

Bonne journée !

Have a good day!

Guides for French learners

The Most Common French Verbs: the 20 You'll Actually UseThe 20 most common French verbs, with the present-tense forms you need, real example sentences with native audio, and two shortcuts for past and future.Ordering in French: Cafés, Bakeries and Restaurants (with Menu Vocabulary)How to order in French at a café, a bakery and a restaurant: the phrases, the questions staff ask, and the menu and food vocabulary to understand the answers.

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