The quick answer: cheers in Italian is cin cin! (cheen cheen) or salute! (“health!”). Eyes meet, glasses touch, never with water. Hear every toast below. 👇
Cin cin!
cheen cheen · the Italian cheers
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Every Italian toast worth knowing
| Italian | Say it like | Use it when… | Listen |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cin cin! | cheen cheen | the playful classic | |
| Salute! | sah-LOO-teh | “health!” — works everywhere | |
| Alla salute! | AHL-lah sah-LOO-teh | “to health!” — a touch grander | |
| Alla nostra! | AHL-lah NOH-strah | “to ours!” (health, luck) — a warm “to us!” | |
| Facciamo un brindisi! | fahch-CHAH-moh oon BREEN-dee-zee | “let’s make a toast!” | |
| Cento di questi giorni! | CHEN-toh dee KWES-tee JOR-nee | birthday & anniversary toast — “100 of these days!” |
💡 Pronunciation tip: cin cin is exactly “cheen cheen” — the Italian c before i is (almost) always the English “ch”. Once you know that rule, half of Italian pronunciation unlocks itself.
The unwritten rules of the brindisi
An Italian toast is a small ceremony: someone proposes it (facciamo un brindisi!), glasses rise, eyes meet — always the eyes — glasses touch, and only then do you drink. Toasting with water is genuinely avoided (bad luck), and reaching across another clinking pair gets a theatrical gasp.
🇮🇹 At the aperitivo: the golden hour of Italian social life runs on spritz, olives and cin cin. If the birthday crowd is present, the toast merges into tanti auguri — one seamless Italian celebration.
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Practice: quick check
1. Spritz in hand, sunset in Venice…
Cin cin! — eyes up, glasses touch, golden hour complete.
2. Sunday lunch with the whole famiglia…
Alla nostra! — “to us!” — the toast that makes you part of the table.
3. You want to START the toast yourself…
Facciamo un brindisi! — “let’s make a toast!” — stand up, raise the glass, own the moment.
Frequently asked questions
How do you say cheers in Italian?
Cin cin (cheen cheen) — the cheerful clink-clink of glasses — or salute (“health!”). Both are correct everywhere; cin cin is playful, salute slightly more classic.
Why do Italians say cin cin?
It imitates the sound of glasses touching — and it likely arrived from the Chinese qǐng qǐng (“please, please”) via 19th-century sailors. Italy heard it, loved it, kept it.
What are the rules for an Italian toast?
Eye contact when clinking, avoid crossing your glass over anyone else’s mid-toast, and never toast with water — Italians consider it bad luck. An empty glass? Wait for the pour, then cin cin.