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thank you

thank you

∞ 1.0
A polite phrase people say to show they feel grateful
  • noun
  • /θæŋk ju/
: agradecimiento
  • Welcome to the farm and thank you for choosing us.
  • a special thank you
  • extend a thank you

Examples

  • And I also want to thank you, our members, for your support and dedication.

    Academic text (2011)
  • Thank you very much and thank you for your help.

  • Thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you, Thank you.

  • And we just thank you so much for that.

  • And may I say thank you for watching this video.

  • I hope that you enjoyed it and thank you so much for watching.

  • Steve, I have to thank you.

  • I'm grateful and thank you for your kind words.

  • Sorry about the delay in responding, but I wish to thank you for your words of wisdom.

    Academic text (2013)
  • I wanted to thank you for helping me with my project.

Synonyms

thanks
vsthank you
∞ 1.0

Words you say or write to show you are grateful

is more formal and explicitly polite in social situations
ta
vsthank you
  • UK
7 9.9

To say thank you in a short informal way in Britain

is more neutral and formally polite in any setting
thanks a bunch
vsthank you
  • Informal
4 7.7

An informal way of saying thank you very much

is more neutral and formally polite not strongly emotional
merci
vsthank you
4 8.8

A French word used to say thank you

is the regular polite English phrase rather than a foreign borrowing
gracias
vsthank you
4 8.6

A Spanish word used to say thank you

is the common English polite form rather than a foreign expression
grazie
vsthank you
1 9.5

An Italian word used to say thank you

is the usual English polite phrase rather than a foreign variant
tha
vsthank you
  • Slang
1 9.9

A short informal form of thank you used in casual speech or messages

is the standard polite form rather than slang or text spelling
domo
vsthank you
  • Informal
1 9.9

A casual Japanese word meaning thanks

is the standard polite English phrase rather than a casual foreign term
danke
vsthank you
  • Informal
1 9.9

An informal way to say thank you that comes from German and is used in English conversation

is the neutral English polite phrase rather than a borrowed foreign word
thankee
vsthank you
  • Archaic
9.9

A friendly old word people say to show they are grateful

is the modern neutral polite expression rather than old fashioned usage
ta everso
vsthank you
  • UK
9.9

An informal British way to say thank you very much

is the standard polite phrase without extra intensity or regional mark
to mahalo
vsthank you
  • US
9.9

To say thank you to someone

is the standard English polite phrase rather than a foreign term
cheers
vsthank you
  • UK
6.7

A friendly informal word used to thank someone, say goodbye, and to make a toast before drinking

is a focused polite phrase for gratitude rather than a general greeting

How Grateful

thank you
∞ 1.0
thanks
∞ 1.0

Surface Forms

thank you singular
thank yous plural

Morphology

thank + you

The meaning 'to express gratitude' is directly and transparently derived from combining 'thank' (to express thanks) with 'you' (the addressee); the phrase simply performs the speech act signalled by its parts. This construction is conventionalized but compositional and has clear cross-linguistic equivalents, so a B1 learner who knows both constituents will readily understand it.

Etymology

Thank you comes from saying 'I thank you' or 'I give you thanks' in full; imagine handing someone a small gift to show thanks, and the short phrase became the easy way to show 'thanks'.