How to propose a toast / Как сказать тост

The most common mistake foreigners make when they try to propose a toast in Russian is “НА здоровье“.  Russians never say that, they always drink “За здоровье!” “За” means “for”, so we drink “for things”. The expression “На здоровье” exists but it means “You are welcome”, it is the other way to answer, when people say “Спасибо!”

And by the way, health is not the only thing Russians can drink to. You can also drink to:

• За здоровье! – to health!
• За любовь! – to love!
• За богатство! – to wealth!
• За успех! – to success!
• За дружбу! – to friendship!
• За вас! – to you!
• За нас! – to us!