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Toi Toi Toi

Learn a funny, quirky German word each week with DW's Word of the Week feature. This week: Toi Toi Toi.

https://p.dw.com/p/Rlqi
Image: dpa

Spitting may not be a nice thing to, but a vocal imitation of this act is the German way of wishing good luck. It is said that the phrase "toi, toi, toi" derived from the old tradition of spitting over your shoulder three times to ward off the devil or other bad spirits. It might sound funny, but spitting on someone could actually be considered kinder than the English tradition of telling them to break a leg.

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