à votre santé
/a vɔ.tʁə sɑ̃.te/
The French phrase for 'to your health' is à votre santé.
The phrase is used when making a toast. The word santé is a common and versatile way to say 'to your health' in French.
Meaning: phrase used when making a toast (phrase)
What does it mean word for word?
The phrase is composed of the preposition à (to), the possessive adjective votre (your) and the noun santé (health).
Which one should you use?
While à votre santé is used for formal or polite toasts, you can use à ta santé when toasting a close friend or someone you address using 'tu'. In casual settings, speakers often shorten the toast to just Santé ! or use the playful and informal Tchin-tchin to mean 'cheers'.
How do you pronounce it?
/a vɔ.tʁə sɑ̃.te/
Did you know?
- In some French-speaking cultures, it is considered bad luck to clink glasses if you are not looking the other person directly in the eyes. Doing so is thought to bring seven years of bad luck.
- The informal toast tchin-tchin is an onomatopoeia imitating the sound of glasses clinking, and it is believed to have been influenced by Chinese phrases.
- The noun santé shares a common ancestor with the English word 'sanity'. Both words stem from the Latin 'sanitas', which refers to a state of being sound or whole.
Examples in context
- À votre santé !Here's to your health!This example shows how to use à votre santé in a toast.Tatoeba #11581 by Lulantis, translation #54474 by CM
- À votre santé et à des jours meilleurs !To your health and better days!This example demonstrates a toast combining à votre santé with a wish for better days.Tatoeba #6894607 by felix63, translation #6894713 by kaiperkins271
- Tchin-tchin, mes amis!Cheers, my friends!
- Levons nos verres, à votre santé !Let's raise our glasses, to your health!
Example conversation
Emma and Lucas are having dinner at a restaurant.
- EmmaCe vin est délicieux. À votre santé !This wine is delicious. To your health!
- LucasMerci, Emma. À votre santé également !Thank you, Emma. To your health as well!
- EmmaJe suis ravie de vous voir.I am delighted to see you.
- LucasMoi aussi, Lucas est heureux d'être ici.Me too, Lucas is happy to be here.
Sources
- Pronunciation: Wiktionary entry à votre santé, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries santé, votre, à, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
