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PhrasesAt the BarFacciamo un brindisi!
A2informal

Facciamo un brindisi!

Let's make a toast!

Pronunciation

BRIN-di-si — three syllables, stress on first.

When to use it

When raising glasses in a celebratory toast — at a birthday, arrival of a friend, good news, or simply the joy of being together.

What it means

'Brindisi' = toast (as in raising glasses). 'Facciamo' = let's make/do. This is the moment to clink glasses. Italian toast etiquette requires eye contact with each person at the table — avoiding eye contact during a toast is considered bad luck.

Variations

Salute!

Cheers! / To your health!

The most common Italian toast — said while clinking glasses

Cin cin!

Cheers! (clink clink)

Onomatopoeic — imitates the sound of clinking glasses. Very casual.

Alla nostra!

To us!

'Alla nostra' (to ours) — to the group, to friendship

Mini Dialogue

— Facciamo un brindisi! Alla salute di tutti! — Salute! — Cin cin! — E tanti anni di amicizia — salute!

— Let's make a toast! To everyone's health! — Cheers! — Cheers! — And many years of friendship — cheers!

Cultural Note

Italian toast superstition: never cross arms while clinking glasses (bad luck), always maintain eye contact with each person (avoiding eye contact means you wish them 7 years of bad luck in bed, according to Italian folk tradition), and drink after the clinking, never before. These rules are enforced with gentle humour at Italian tables.