Posted on October 28th, 2013
In today’s lesson you will learn the most common goodbyes in Russian. There are several ways to say goodbye in Russian, let’s talk about each one of them in a little more detail. Have fun!
You can start the lesson by watching the video:
Some of the most popular ways to say “good-bye” in Russian is
До свидания [da svee-DA-nee-ya] good-bye
До свидания is a formal good-bye, and you would use it with a person or people whom address in “вы”.
Пока! [pa-KA] bye
Пока is informal, and is used spoken Russian with someone you can address in “ты”.
The “good-byes” below are informal, but sometimes they can be used in formal situations. This would depend on the context and on whom you are speaking with. If you are at a workplace, and you are unsure you can always say “до свидания” until you get to know people you work with a little better.
До завтра! [da ZAF-tra] See you tomorrow!
До послезавтра! [da pas-lee-ZAV-tra] see you the day after tomorrow!
До встречи! [da FSTRYE-chee] See you later!
До вечера! [da VYE-chi-ra] See you tonight!
Прощай! [pra-SHAY] Good-bye
“Прощай” is rarely used in spoken Russian, but you might see it in Russian literature. “Прощай” conveys dramatic mood and usually, you would say “прощай!” if you think that you will never see that person again.
On the contrary, if you know exactly when you will see your friend, you can use any of the “good-byes” below
До пятницы! [da PYAT-nee-tsi] till Friday
If you know you will see your friend on Friday, or you can always substitute Friday with another day of the week.
До апреля! [da ap-RYE-lya] till April
You can substitute April with a different month.
Увидимся в воскресенье! [oo-VEE-deem-sya v vask-ri-SYEN’-ye] see on Sunday!
Of course, in all examples above you can substitute days of the week or months above with any other day of the week a month, or a date.
These two “good-byes” are variations of “пока”.
Покедово! [pa-KYE-da-va] bye (informal)
“Покедово!” comes from of “Пока!” and is also used in informal speech.
Пока! Пока! [pa-KA pa-KA] bye
Давай! [da-VAY] bye
“Давай!” means “Give!” or “Let’s…” literally, but in this case it’s used as a slang word and is used as “bye” in Russian.
“See you” in Russian is:
Увидимся! [oo-VEE-deem-sya] See you!
This is all of today. I hope you had a fun lesson. Let me know if you have any questions. If you would like to learn more about Russian greetings and goodbyes, as well as most common conversation starters in Russian, read my lesson “Greetings in Russian that You Will Not Find in Textbooks”.
I’ll see you very soon! 
Viktoria.
Related Posts:
- 16 Types of Russian Ice Cream You Must Know
- Video: Most Common Russian Greetings
- 10 Romantic Phrases from the Romantic Russian Video Course
- Fruits and Berries in Russian
- 20 Words & Expressions from the Conversational Russian Video Course
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Study with Maxim Achkasov
The courses of Russian as a foreign language with Russian4real take place online via Skype. The teacher works with adults individually since he is convinced that each person must receive maximum time for practice and professional attention while learning a foreign language.