French word

trinquer

Pronunciation

IPA/tʁɛ̃ke/

Meaning

  • verbtoast

Example

Nous allons trinquer ce soir.

We are going to toast tonight.

Illustration for trinquer (toast)

More examples

Si tu fais cette erreur, tu vas trinquer.

If you make this mistake, you'll suffer the consequences.

Core concept

Two glasses meet in a brief toast, while the same impact can suggest taking the consequences of an event.

Common phrases

  • trinquer pour célébrer

    raise a toast to celebrate

  • trinquer à la victoire

    drink to victory

Similar words

porter un toast: To lift a glass while expressing a greeting or celebratory wish.
lever son verre: To hold up a glass to indicate a toast.
faire un toast: To offer a short toast that prompts others to drink.
boire: To take a drink of a beverage.

Definition in French

Heurter deux verres l'un contre l'autre pour prononcer un toast, employé aussi familièrement pour dire qu'une personne va subir les conséquences.

Word origin

Trinquer comes from Germanic trinken, meaning 'to drink', and French extended the drinking-related verb to clinking glasses and then to suffering consequences.

Usage tips

  • For a toast, trinquer commonly takes à, as in trinquer à la santé de quelqu'un, while the consequence sense often appears in en trinquer.

Other meanings

  • sufferverb

Opposites

Word lists with this word