: the position of a participant in a tournament who advances to the next round without playing
drew a first-round bye

bye

2 of 3

interjection

—used as a shortened form of goodbye to express farewell
When he finally spoke, though, and said, "Bye, I'll call you," instead of disappointment she had felt an enormous rush of relief—a feeling, she thinks now, of things falling back into place.—Ann Packer
The stag lowered his head and raised it again. He blew out a frosty puff of air, then leaped away, vanishing into the mist. "Bye," Annie said wistfully.—Mary Pope Osborne
"Bye, Mom! Bye, Auggie!" I kissed them both quickly and headed toward the door.—R. J. Palacio

bye

3 of 3

noun (2)

variant spelling of by entry 3, by entry 4, by entry 5

: something of secondary importance : a side issue
by the by

Examples of bye in a Sentence

Noun (1) She got a bye into the second round of the tennis tournament.
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Noun
Coming off a bye week, Boise State will hope its wide receiver corps is rejuvenated for the trip north this weekend to face Washington State. — Shaun Goodwin, Idaho Statesman, 22 Oct. 2026 Well-rested after a bye, the unassuming Jones should do very well. — Bill Reinhard, New York Daily News, 22 Oct. 2026
Interjection
The Rams have 11 games remaining, including Sunday’s against the Raiders, a home game against the Chargers and road games at Washington and Arizona before their bye week. — Gary Klein, Los Angeles Times, 24 Oct. 2026 As the Chiefs were beating the Chargers, the Dolphins upset the Patriots, giving the Chiefs a first-round bye. — Sam McDowell, Kansas City Star, 23 Oct. 2026 See All Example Sentences for bye

Word History

Etymology

Noun (1)

alteration of by entry 2

First Known Use

Noun (1)

1883, in the meaning defined above

Interjection

1618, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of bye was in 1618

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Bye.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/bye. Accessed 27 Oct. 2026.

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