How to Say “Farewell for now” in Chinese
Greetings and politeness · HSK 3
"Farewell for now" in Chinese is 就此别过 (jiù cǐ bié guò). 就此别过 is literary and slightly dramatic; you'll hear it in wuxia films and period dramas more than at the coffee shop. In real life, Chinese speakers wrap up conversations with 先这样吧 ('let's leave it here for now') or the ubiquitous 回头见 ('see you later').
Primary translation
就此别过
jiù cǐ bié guò
Traditional: 就此別過
Variants by register
Formal
就此别过
jiù cǐ bié guò
Casual
先这样吧
xiān zhèyàng ba
When to use it
就此别过 is literary and slightly dramatic; you'll hear it in wuxia films and period dramas more than at the coffee shop. In real life, Chinese speakers wrap up conversations with 先这样吧 ('let's leave it here for now') or the ubiquitous 回头见 ('see you later'). Use the formal version in writing, emails, or when you want a poetic touch. The 此 (cǐ, 'this') is classical; modern speech would use 这 (zhè). Foreigners who drop 就此别过 in casual WeChat get smiles.
Example sentences
时间不早了，就此别过。
Shíjiān bù zǎo le, jiù cǐ bié guò.
It's getting late; farewell for now.
我们先这样吧，明天再聊。
Wǒmen xiān zhèyàng ba, míngtiān zài liáo.
Let's leave it here for now, talk tomorrow.
就此别过，后会有期。
Jiù cǐ bié guò, hòu huì yǒu qī.
Farewell for now; until we meet again.