Cheers in Persian: How to Toast, Say Thanks and Reply (Be Salâmati, Nush and More)

The usual way to say cheers in Persian when you raise a glass is به سلامتی (be salâmati), literally “to health.” Friends also say نوش (nush), “drink up, enjoy,” and the reply to that is often نوش جان (nush-e jân). If you mean “cheers” as in thanks, say مرسی (mersi); if you mean goodbye, say خداحافظ (khodâhâfez).

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English uses one small word for three different jobs: a toast, a casual thank-you, and a friendly goodbye. Persian has a separate phrase for each, plus a few lovely expressions English has no word for at all, like what you say to someone who has just had a shower or a haircut. Below you will find every phrase with pronunciation, when Iranians actually use it, how to reply, and a short look at toasting and tea culture in Iran. Practice exercises and a quiz follow.

Cheers in Persian at a glance

به سلامتی (be salâmati): the Persian toast

به سلامتی is made of به (be), “to,” and سلامتی (salâmati), “health.” It is the direct equivalent of “cheers,” “to your health,” “salud” or “prost.” Say it as you lift your glass. In fast speech the two words run together, “besalâmati,” with the stress on the last syllable: sa-lâ-ma-TI.

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The phrase is not tied to alcohol. Iranians say it over tea, juice, دوغ (dugh, the salty yogurt drink), شربت (sharbat, a sweet fruit or flower syrup drink), soda, or a glass of water at a family dinner. If you remember only one Persian toast, this is the one.

Toasting someone: “to the health of…”

To dedicate the toast to someone, link سلامتی to the person with the ezâfe vowel. After the final -i of salâmati the ezâfe is pronounced -ye (see the guide to ezâfe in Persian for the rule). The ezâfe is not written in normal spelling, but you hear it.

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In casual speech you will also hear بزنیم به سلامتی (bezanim be salâmati), roughly “let’s drink to…,” from the verb زدن (zadan), “to hit,” as in clinking glasses. It is informal and belongs among friends.

به افتخار (be eftekhâr-e): in honor of

For a speech-style toast, or when asking a room to applaud someone, Persian uses به افتخار (be eftekhâr-e), “in honor of.” At a wedding or party you will hear به افتخار عروس و داماد (be eftekhâr-e arus o dâmâd), “in honor of the bride and groom,” usually followed by applause. It is a natural partner to be salâmati: one raises the glass, the other raises the room.

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Be salâmati when someone shares good news

This is the use learners miss. When a friend tells you something good, such as a new car, a new job or a planned trip, a common short reply is به سلامتی, meaning “how nice, congratulations, may it go well.” It is lighter than مبارکه (mobâreke), “congratulations” (more in our post on congratulations in Persian).

• ماشین خریدم. (mâshin kharidam.) I bought a car. Reply: به سلامتی. (be salâmati.) Oh nice, congrats.
• فردا میرم مسافرت. (fardâ miram mosâferat.) I’m going on a trip tomorrow (spoken). Reply: به سلامتی، خوش بگذره. (be salâmati, khosh begzare.) Great, have a good time (spoken).

The single word سلامتی (salâmati) is also the classic answer to چه خبر؟ (che khabar?), “what’s new?” It means “nothing much, all well.” See more small talk in hello in Persian.

نوش (nush) and نوش جان (nush-e jân)

نوش (nush) is an old Persian word for something sweet and pleasant to drink. On its own, said as glasses touch, it works like “drink up” or “enjoy.” It is casual and mostly heard among friends; به سلامتی is the safer choice with people you don’t know well.

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نوش جان (nush-e jân) means “may it be sweet to your soul.” It is one of the most useful phrases at an Iranian table, and it does three jobs:

• Enjoy your meal. Said to someone who is eating or drinking, like “bon appétit” or “enjoy.”
• You’re welcome, for food. When a guest thanks the host for a meal, the host answers نوش جان. You will hear it whenever someone says دستتون درد نکنه (dastetun dard nakone, spoken), “thank you” (literally “may your hand not hurt”), after eating.
• A polite “no, thanks, you enjoy it.” If someone offers you a bite of their snack and you don’t want it, نوش جان declines warmly.

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In spoken Persian it is often personal: نوش جونت (nush-e jun-et), to one person you know well, or نوش جونتون (nush-e jun-etun), to someone you address politely or to several people. The word جان (jân) becomes جون (jun) in Tehran speech, just as نان (nân) becomes نون (nun).

گوارای وجود (govârâ-ye vojud)

When someone finishes a glass of water or tea, especially after a meal or on a hot day, you can say گوارای وجود (govârâ-ye vojud), “may it be pleasant to your being,” a bit like “that’ll do you good.” It is warm and slightly old-fashioned, and older relatives love to hear it. The reply is simply مرسی (mersi) or ممنون (mamnun).

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Toasting in Iranian culture

Drinking alcohol is illegal for Muslims in Iran, and many Iranians, inside and outside the country, do not drink for religious or personal reasons. So the Persian toast is usually raised with soft drinks: tea, dugh, sharbat, juice or soda. At a family gathering someone may lift a glass of sharbat and say به سلامتی, and nobody thinks it is odd. Among Iranians abroad, toasts at weddings and Nowruz parties use the same words whatever is in the glass (read about the holiday in our Nowruz guide).

A few practical points:

• You do not need to clink glasses for be salâmati to make sense. Lifting the glass slightly is enough.
• Don’t press anyone to drink alcohol or ask why they are not drinking. Offer a toast with whatever they have.
• At the table, hosts will keep offering more food and drink, and guests politely refuse at first. This back-and-forth is part of taarof, Persian politeness.

Tea: Iran’s everyday drink

If there is one drink you will share with Iranians, it is tea, چای (chây), usually called چایی (châyi) in speech. It is served hot and strong in small clear glasses, often with sugar cubes, قند (ghand), that people hold in the mouth while sipping. Freshly brewed tea is چای تازه‌دم (chây-e tâze-dam). Tea is offered to guests the moment they sit down, and refusing it outright can feel cold.

Tea time does not have its own toast, but it has its own phrases:

Listen

Hear a full exchange in the lesson Coffee or Tea? Offering Drinks.

“Cheers” meaning thanks

In British and Australian English, “cheers” often just means “thanks.” Persian has no toast word that doubles as thanks, so use a thank-you word instead:

Listen

For formal thanks and more replies, see the full guide to thank you in Persian.

“Cheers” meaning goodbye

When “cheers” is a quick sign-off, Persian uses a goodbye:

• خداحافظ (khodâhâfez), “goodbye,” literally “God protect (you).” Fine in every situation.
• فعلاً (fe’lan), “for now,” used like “see you” or “cheers, bye” between friends and colleagues.
• بای (bây), from English “bye,” common among young people.

Listen

The conversation lesson How to Say Goodbye in Persian shows these in a dialogue.

عافیت باشه (âfiyat bâshe): after a bath, a haircut or a sneeze

Here Persian has something English does not. عافیت باشه (âfiyat bâshe, spoken; written عافیت باشد) means roughly “may it bring you good health.” Iranians say it to someone who has just come out of the bath or shower, to someone with a fresh haircut, and often after a sneeze, where it plays the role of “bless you.” A barber may say it as you leave the chair.

Listen

The reply is مرسی (mersi) or سلامت باشی (salâmat bâshi), “may you be healthy,” which becomes سلامت باشید (salâmat bâshid) for someone you address politely. You can rehearse a barbershop chat in Getting a Haircut.

Cheer up and cheering on: other senses of “cheer”

If you came here looking for a different “cheer,” these are the everyday Persian phrases:

Cups and wine in Persian poetry

Classical Persian poetry is full of drinking imagery, often with a mystical meaning: the wine stands for divine love and the tavern for a place free of hypocrisy. If you read Hafez, Khayyam or Rumi, these words come up constantly:

• جام (jâm), cup, goblet
• ساقی (sâghi), the cupbearer who pours the wine
• می (mey) and باده (bâde), wine (literary)

Explore them in context in our collection of Persian poems.

Want to test more everyday phrases? Try the Persian greetings quiz, and look up any word in the online Persian dictionary.

Common questions

How do you say cheers in Farsi?

Say به سلامتی (be salâmati), “to health,” as you raise your glass. Friends also say نوش (nush). Farsi and Persian are the same language, so the phrase is the same.

What does “nush” or “noosh” mean in Persian?

نوش (nush, often spelled “noosh” in English) means something pleasant to drink; said alone it is a casual “drink up, enjoy.” نوش جان (nush-e jân) means “enjoy your meal” and is also the reply to thanks for food.

Do Iranians toast if they don’t drink alcohol?

Yes. Be salâmati is about health, so it is used with tea, dugh, sharbat, juice or water. Alcohol is illegal for Muslims in Iran, and many Iranians do not drink, but the toast is still common at family meals and celebrations.

What is the reply to “be salâmati”?

Usually the same phrase back, به سلامتی, or نوش (nush) among friends. If the toast is to you, say مرسی (mersi) or ممنون (mamnun).

How do you say “cheers” as in thanks in Persian?

Use مرسی (mersi) or ممنون (mamnun). Between close friends, دمت گرم (damet garm) is the closest match to a casual British “cheers.”

What does “âfiyat bâshe” mean?

عافیت باشه wishes someone good health after a bath, a shower or a haircut, and is often said after a sneeze. Reply with مرسی or سلامت باشی (salâmat bâshi).

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