Sláinte!
When to use it The universal toast: one word, always right.
Word by word
Each headword links to its entry in Ó Dónaill’s Foclóir Gaeilge–Béarla (1977) on teanglann.ie; the glosses are quoted from it.
| In the saying | Headword | Dictionary gloss | Grammar |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sláinte | sláinte | health; (as a toast) a health | a feminine noun standing alone as an exclamation. Ó Dónaill prints the toast use itself: “Sláinte! Seo do shláinte! Here’s a health to you!” |
How to use it
One word, and there is no grammar to get wrong: it is a noun, not a sentence, so it serves one drinker or a room without changing shape. Raising a glass while saying it is the whole ritual.
Nothing needs to be said back beyond the same word. The toast answers itself. If the moment wants one more word, the fuller form is Sláinte mhaith, “good health”.
Register: universal. It is said in every company, to strangers and family alike, and it is the first Irish word most of the world learns.
Where it comes from
Ó Dónaill’s entry for sláinte gives the noun (health) and then the toast sense in so many words: “Toast. Sláinte duine a ól, to drink (to) the health of s.o.”, with the exclamations “Sláinte! Seo do shláinte! Here’s a health to you!” printed as usage. The dictionary also records the fuller wish family (health and long life together) that our related records carry.
The word itself is ordinary Irish vocabulary of long standing, but we date claims by what we can show: the earliest attestation of the toast use we can point at is Ó Dónaill (1977), s.v. sláinte. We found no need, and no licence, to claim more.
About this saying
The most travelled Irish word in the world leads a double life: it simply means health, and raising it over a glass turns the noun into a toast. Wishing someone health and drinking to them are the same gesture in Irish. The fuller toast sláinte mhaith (good health) has its own record. And the fada matters even here: strip it and the word is no longer the word.
For the same occasion
- Go maire sibh bhur saol nuaMay you enjoy your new life together.Addressed to the couple themselves, in the plural, in the subjunctive Irish keeps for blessings. Choose it when the print is for the couple. It is the wording that speaks to them directly.
- Ar scáth a chéile a mhaireann na daoineWe live in one another's shelter.The line most often read at Irish weddings, and it is not about marriage at all. People live in one another’s shelter. Choose it over the direct blessings when you want the reading rather than the wish.
- Ní neart go cur le chéileThere is strength in unity.Five words on what a marriage is, without a single sentimental one. Choose it when the piece must survive being made small. It is short enough to engrave.
- Ní buan cogadh na gcaradA quarrel between friends does not last.A quarrel between friends does not last. The tradition’s dry reassurance. Choose it for a couple who would grin at it; it suits the speech better than the card.
On a card, a speech, a print
On a print it belongs where the glasses are (kitchen, bar cart, den) and the exclamation mark is part of the record’s wording. As a toast it is said at the raise, not after; everything else is optional.
Engraving a single word magnifies every detail: the fada on the á is the entire difference between the toast and a non-word. Check the proof.
Questions people ask
Is sláinte Irish or Scottish Gaelic?
Both languages toast with their own form of the word. They are close relatives. Ours is the Irish, cited to Ó Dónaill’s dictionary; Scottish Gaelic writes its accent the other way, a grave leaning left where the Irish fada leans right.
What do I say when someone says sláinte to me?
The same word back, or simply drink. The toast needs no answer. If you want to go one better, Sláinte mhaith returns good health for health.
Does it work for a birthday or only with drink?
It began as drinking to someone’s health and stays happiest with a glass in hand, but as a wish (health) it offends nobody anywhere. For a birthday with more ceremony, Go maire tú an céad wishes the full hundred years.
How is it pronounced?
SLAWN-cheh: the á long because of its fada, the t softened by the slender e beside it. Close enough will be understood anywhere a glass is raised.
Provenance
Where this wording comes from. We publish nothing we cannot point at.
- DictionaryÓ Dónaill, Foclóir Gaeilge–Béarla (1977)s.v. sláinte
Sources checked 2026-08-28; page last reviewed 2026-08-31. How we source and review is on the About page.