Phrase guide

good riddance to bad rubbish

intj · noun · 2 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.

  • Received-Pronunciation: /ˌɡʊd ˈɹɪd(ə)ns tə ˌbæd ˈɹʌbɪʃ/
  • Southern-England: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
  • General-American: /ˌɡʊd ˈɹɪdns tə ˌbæd ˈɹʌbɪʃ/
  • General-American: /-ˈɹəbɪʃ/

1

intj

Meaning 1

Used to indicate that one welcomes the departure of someone or something: good riddance!

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Examples

  • “Franklin quit today.” “Well, good riddance to bad rubbish!”

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

2

noun

Meaning 2

An act of getting rid of someone or something whose departure is welcomed.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: uncountable

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

History

Etymology

Possibly an elaboration of good riddance, contrasting the word good with bad, and using the word rubbish to form an alliteration with riddance.