Chao
/ˈtʃaʊ/noun
An informal expression meaning goodbye, used as a variant spelling of ciao.
Did you know?Ciao developed from the Venetian phrase s-ciào vostro, literally “I am your servant,” before becoming a casual greeting and farewell.
Etymological Timeline
6th Century
Byzantine Greek
Σκλάβος (Sklábos)
“A Slav; an ethnonym for Slavic peoples”
Early Middle Ages
Medieval Latin
sclavus
“A Slav, which later also came to mean an enslaved person”
13th–14th Century
Venetian
s-ciào
“Servant; a shortened form used in the expression meaning “your servant””
14th–16th Century
Venetian Italian
s-ciao vostro
“I am your servant; a deferential greeting or farewell”
19th Century
Italian
ciao
“An informal greeting or farewell”
Modern English
English
chao
“A variant spelling of ciao, meaning goodbye”