Translation guide
The act of accompanying someone who is leaving, typically to say goodbye at a station, airport, or doorway. Japanese has specific verbs and set phrases for this common social ritual.
彼を駅で見送った。
I saw him off at the station.
彼女を見送りに空港へ行った。
We went to the airport to see her off.
To accompany a departing person to their point of departure and say goodbye there.
The standard verb for seeing someone off. It implies going with them to the station, airport, etc., and watching them leave.
友達を駅まで見送った。
I saw my friend off at the station.
両親を空港で見送るのはいつも寂しい。
It's always sad to see my parents off at the airport.
Literally 'go to see off'. Used when the act of going to see someone off is emphasized.
明日、妹の見送りに空港へ行く。
Tomorrow I'm going to the airport to see my sister off.
Humble form of 見送る. Used when the person being seen off is a superior, guest, or customer.
社長をお見送りしました。
I saw the company president off.
To see a visitor or family member to the door and say goodbye as they leave.
Also used for seeing someone off from your home or office entrance.
お客さんを玄関まで見送った。
I saw the guest off at the front door.
Literally 'accompany to the entrance'. A casual way to say you walked someone to the door.
友達を玄関まで送った。
I walked my friend to the door.
To watch someone leave from a window, platform, etc., without physically accompanying them.
Can also mean simply watching someone leave until they are out of sight.
電車が見えなくなるまで見送った。
I watched the train until it was out of sight.
To wave goodbye as someone leaves.
彼女は手を振って見送ってくれた。
She waved me off.
Common expressions used when seeing someone off.
Said to someone leaving the house, meaning 'go and come back safely'. The standard send-off phrase.
「いってきます」「いってらっしゃい」
"I'm off!" "See you later!"
Means 'take care' or 'be careful'. Often added when seeing someone off.
気をつけて行ってきてね。
Take care and have a safe trip.
Said when parting for a long time, meaning 'stay well' or 'take care of yourself'.
お元気で、また会いましょう。
Take care, let's meet again.
見送る (みおくる) specifically means 'to see off', implying you watch the person depart. 送る (おくる) means 'to send' or 'to escort' and can be used for taking someone part of the way, but not necessarily watching them leave. For seeing off at a station, 見送る is more precise.
In Japan, it is common to see guests off at the door or even to the elevator or street. The phrase お見送り (おみおくり) is often used in business settings when seeing clients or superiors off.