{"id":8882,"date":"2022-09-11T17:11:50","date_gmt":"2022-09-11T17:11:50","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/english-grammar-lessons.com\/?p=8882"},"modified":"2022-09-11T17:12:01","modified_gmt":"2022-09-11T17:12:01","slug":"godspeed-meaning","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/english-grammar-lessons.com\/godspeed-meaning\/","title":{"rendered":"Godspeed \u2013 Meaning, Origin and Usage"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Did a friend just wish you <strong><em>\u2018Godspeed\u2019<\/em><\/strong> as you say farewell? This post unpacks the meaning and origin of this expression.<\/p>\n<h2>Meaning<\/h2>\n<p>The expression <em>\u2018Godspeed\u2019<\/em> acts as a <u>farewell greeting to people embarking on a journey<\/u>. Originally, people would use <em>\u2018Godspeed\u2019<\/em> to wish someone well <u>before taking a physical or metaphysical journey<\/u>. If you wish someone <em>\u2018Godspeed,\u2019<\/em> You\u2019re essentially wishing them <u>good luck and a safe journey.<\/u><\/p>\n<p>It\u2019s more common for people to use <em>\u2018Godspeed\u2019<\/em> when <u>wishing someone well on a long journey.<\/u> However, in recent decades, the use of the expression <u>changed to a simple farewell greeting suitable for any trip or departure.<\/u><\/p>\n<h2>Example Usage<\/h2>\n<p>\"Good luck and Godspeed. It's dangerous over there in Africa. I'm impressed at how you're so willing to help others.\"<\/p>\n<p>\"Thanks for stopping by. It was great to see you again. Let's catch up on the weekend and have a chat. Until then, Godspeed, my friend.\"<\/p>\n<p>\"Ok, so you know how to get there now. Godspeed with the trip. Remember to be careful when crossing the pass, as it's quite dangerous on that section of road.\"<\/p>\n<p>\"Take care on your vacation. Don't forget to pack the sunscreen and have a great time in the Bahamas. Godspeed to all of you.\"<\/p>\n<p>\"Thanks for coming through. We really appreciate it. This was an amazing evening, and it was great to have you both here.; Drive safe on your way home. Godspeed.\"<\/p>\n<p>\"That's some trip you have in front of you. I wish I was young enough to travel the world with you, but my old frame can't take it anymore. Good luck out there, and Godspeed.\"<\/p>\n<p>\"I wish you good luck and Godspeed, my friend. May you find the answers to the questions you have in life.\"<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-8884\" src=\"https:\/\/english-grammar-lessons.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/09\/Godspeed.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"295\" height=\"295\" srcset=\"https:\/\/english-grammar-lessons.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/09\/Godspeed.jpg 295w, https:\/\/english-grammar-lessons.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/09\/Godspeed-150x150.jpg 150w, https:\/\/english-grammar-lessons.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/09\/Godspeed-120x120.jpg 120w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 295px) 100vw, 295px\" \/> <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-medium wp-image-8885\" src=\"https:\/\/english-grammar-lessons.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/09\/Godspeed2.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"293\" height=\"293\" srcset=\"https:\/\/english-grammar-lessons.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/09\/Godspeed2.jpg 293w, https:\/\/english-grammar-lessons.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/09\/Godspeed2-150x150.jpg 150w, https:\/\/english-grammar-lessons.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/09\/Godspeed2-120x120.jpg 120w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 293px) 100vw, 293px\" \/><\/p>\n<h2>Origin<\/h2>\n<p>The expression \u2018Godspeed\u2019 originates from the Middle English \u2018God spede.\u2019 The \u2018God\u2019 in the word refers to the religious deity. The \u2018spede\u2019 refers to the singular-subjunctive form of \u201cspeden,\u2019 meaning \u2018to prosper.\u2019<\/p>\n<p>\u2018Speden\u2019 is a similar word to the Old English \u2018sp\u0113d,\u2019 meaning \u2018success.\u2019 Language experts cannot pinpoint when \u2018Godspeed\u2019 was first introduced into the English lexicon. However, some experts believe it comes from the old text \u2018Sir Tristrem,\u2019 published circa 1300. The word appears in the text as follows.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe may bidde god me spede\u201d.<\/p>\n<p>Another possible origin of the word is from \u2018A Knights Tale,\u2019 one of the stories in Chaucer\u2019s \u2018The Canterbury Tales.\u2019 Chaucer published his work in 1385, where the word appears as follows.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cGod spede yow go forth and ley on faste.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The modern use of the expression appears for the first time in 1526 in the \u2018Tyndale Bible.\u2019<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYf ther come eny vnto you and bringe not this learninge him receave not to housse: neither bid him God spede.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Shakespeare used it in his 1597 play, \u2018Richard II,\u2019 where it appears as follows.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cA brace of draimen bid, God speed him wel.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"GODSPEED MEANING\" width=\"512\" height=\"288\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/lVA_oReIe10?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p>\n<h2>Phrases Similar to Godspeed<\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li>Good luck.<\/li>\n<li>Stay safe.<\/li>\n<li>Farewell.<\/li>\n<li>All the best.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2>Phrases Opposite to Godspeed<\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li>May you live in interesting times.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2>What is the Correct Saying?<\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li>Godspeed.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2>Ways People May Say Godspeed Incorrectly<\/h2>\n<p>Godspeed is not suitable for welcoming people. It\u2019s only a farewell greeting, and the phrase has nothing to do with God or speed. It\u2019s a way of wishing someone luck on their travels and a safe journey.<\/p>\n<h2>Acceptable Ways to Phrase Godspeed<\/h2>\n<p>You can use the term \u2018Godspeed\u2019 when saying farewell to someone. You can use Godspeed as a parting gesture to someone you\u2019ll see again soon or someone you might not see for some time. Typically, \u2018Godspeed\u2019 suits occasions where you wish someone well on an altruistic journey. For instance, someone is going to work on a vessel for Greenpeace.<\/p>\n<p>The term suits social and professional use. You don\u2019t have to be religious to use \u2018Godspeed,\u2019 as it has a secular meaning in everyday conversation. You can use \u2018Godspeed\u2019 in text communications, and most people understand it.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p class=\"mb-2\">Did a friend just wish you \u2018Godspeed\u2019 as you say farewell? This post unpacks the meaning and origin of this expression. Meaning The expression \u2018Godspeed\u2019 acts as a farewell greeting to people embarking on a journey. Originally, people would use \u2018Godspeed\u2019 to wish someone well before taking a physical or metaphysical journey. If you wish [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/english-grammar-lessons.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8882"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/english-grammar-lessons.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/english-grammar-lessons.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/english-grammar-lessons.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/english-grammar-lessons.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=8882"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/english-grammar-lessons.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8882\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":8887,"href":"https:\/\/english-grammar-lessons.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8882\/revisions\/8887"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/english-grammar-lessons.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=8882"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/english-grammar-lessons.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=8882"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/english-grammar-lessons.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=8882"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}