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Polish · Vodka & Toasts

no to cyk

noh toh TSIK · /nɔ tɔ ˈt͡sɨk/

Down the hatch / here we go — the onomatopoeic pre-shot toast.

1/5 Grandma-safe

mild, playful; fine on daytime TV

Literally

"well then, clink"

Word-for-word — which is rarely what it means.

How to use it

"Cyk" is the sound of glasses touching, so "no to cyk" is "right then — clink": the informal launch code for a round of shots, said in place of a full toast when the table has moved past ceremony. Friendly, funny, and instantly endearing from a foreigner — this is insider vocabulary, not phrasebook vocabulary. Grandma-safe 1. Same shelf: "no to jazda" (here we go) and "lecimy" (we're flying) — all of them the Polish table's version of a starting pistol.

Heard in the wild

Wszyscy mają? No to cyk!

Everyone's got one? Down the hatch!

Where it lands

Poland (universal); informal company

Quick answers

What does "no to cyk" mean?
In Polish, "no to cyk" means "Down the hatch / here we go — the onomatopoeic pre-shot toast.". Literally it's "well then, clink". "Cyk" is the sound of glasses touching, so "no to cyk" is "right then — clink": the informal launch code for a round of shots, said in place of a full toast when the table has moved past ceremony. Friendly, funny, and instantly endearing from a foreigner — this is insider vocabulary, not phrasebook vocabulary. Grandma-safe 1. Same shelf: "no to jazda" (here we go) and "lecimy" (we're flying) — all of them the Polish table's version of a starting pistol.
Is "no to cyk" offensive?
It's on the mild end — 1/5 (Grandma-safe) on the Punch-o-Meter. mild, playful; fine on daytime TV.
How do you pronounce "no to cyk"?
Say it "noh toh TSIK" — capitals mark the stressed syllable. In IPA: nɔ tɔ ˈt͡sɨk.

Related in Polish

na zdrowie! nah ZDROH-vyeh Cheers! — the standard toast (and also 'bless you' after a sneeze). chluśniem, bo uśniem KHLOOSH-nyem boh OOSH-nyem Drink up or we'll doze off — the rhyming folk toast. setka SEHT-kah A double shot of vodka — the standard Polish unit of serious drinking. najebany nah-yeh-BAH-nih Hammered / shitfaced. napierdolić się nah-pyehr-DOH-leech sheh To get absolutely wrecked. opierdolić oh-pyehr-DOH-leech To chew someone out — 'opierdol' is the bollocking itself; also, to wolf food down.

The same idea, elsewhere

Via concepts like "A rude toast".

how to say "A rude toast" →

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