thank you

→ Cantonese: thank you (feng¹ kiu⁴)

desc

→ Japanese: サンキュー (sankyū), サンキュ (sankyu)

→ Korean: 땡큐 (ttaengkyu)

→ Malayalam: താങ്ക്യൂ (tāṅkyū)

→ Mandarin: 三Q (sān kiù)

→ Tagalog: tenkyu

[ˈθeɪ̯ŋk ˌju]

[ˈðeɪ̯ŋk ˌju]

From Middle English thanke yow; a shortened expression for I thank you.

“Thank you!” said the girl after her mom gave her a gift.

Jun[ius] […] The General has new Wine, new come over. / He muſt have new Acquaintance for it too, / For I will none, I thank ye. / Pet[ilus] None, I thank ye? / A short and touchy answer. None, I thank ye: / Ye do not scorn it, do ye?

1711, attributed to John Fletcher, “Bonduca, a Tragedy”, in The Works of Mr. Francis Beaumont, and Mr. John Fletcher, volume IV, London: Printed for Jacob Tonson, at Shakespear's Head over-against Catherine-street in the Strand, →OCLC, act I, scene ii, page 2194:

I had some faint recollection of having a penny-piece in my waistcoat pocket, and, pleased with the service he had rendered to us, I gave it him as his guerdon. "Thank ye, sir—thank ye, sir—thank ye, sir," he cried, and immediately returned to his station near the footway.

1826 April 22, “G.”, “The Dukedom (from ‘The News of Literature and Fashion, Science and Art.’)”, in The Spirit of the Times; or, Essence of the Periodicals; Concentrating Every Week, All that is Worthy (as Strictly Regarding the Time) of Being Preserved, from the Whole of Our Newspapers, Magazines, &c., volume I, number XXIX, London: Printed by Milne, Banfield, and Duckworth … for J. Scott, →OCLC, page 436, column 1:

"But, thank you, Lucy, oh, thank you," said Mrs. Dalloway, and thank you, thank you, she went on saying (sitting down on the sofa with her dress over her knees, her scissors, her silks), thank you, thank you, she went on saying in gratitude to her servants generally for helping her to be like this, to be what she wanted, gentle, generous-hearted.

1925 May 14, Virginia Woolf, Mrs. Dalloway, London: Leonard & Virginia Woolf at the Hogarth Press, →OCLC:

Thank you for the music, the songs I'm singing / Thanks for all the joy they're bringing / Who can live without it, I ask in all honesty / What would life be? / Without a song or a dance what are we? / So I say thank you for the music / For giving it to me

1977 December 12, Benny Andersson, Björn Ulvaeus (lyrics and music), “Thank You for the Music”, in ABBA: The Album, performed by ABBA:

Thank ya, ma'am, thank ya, thank ya, thank ya. He's a good dog. He likes ever'body. He won' be no bother. Thank ya, ma'am, thank ya, thank ya.

2002, Bill Boyd, “Striking a Deal”, in Stepdaddy: A Creative Memoir, Macon, Ga.: Mercer University Press, →ISBN, page 96:

Always say "thank you." When in doubt, say "thank you." Say "thank you" even if you think it is not necessary in the circumstances. Whether the recipient thinks it is or is not, it will be appreciated and remembered. It is impossible to say "thank you" too often!

2007, Jerry Goodwin, “Thank You”, in Thank You: One of Seventeen Rules …: Wonderful for Men and Women of All Ages, [Philadelphia, Pa.]: Xlibris, →ISBN, page 19:

His return text came about an hour later. "I Love you … For all the right reasons," he wrote. "And I'm glad 2 know u feel the true love u have 4 me again … Thank u!! You make me feel like i really am superman!!"

2014 February, Colin McEvoy, Lynn Olanoff, chapter 13, in Fatal Jealousy: The True Story of a Doomed Romance, a Singular Obsession, and a Quadruple Murder (St. Martin's True Crime Library), New York, N.Y.: St. Martin's Paperbacks, →ISBN, page 136:

Adrian Shush. / Carl Thank yu. / Adrian Fer what? / Carl Fer staying. / Adrian Man tell mi to. Nuh thank mi. But you must shush.

2014, Roy Williams, Kingston 14, London, New York, N.Y.: Bloomsbury Methuen Drama, →ISBN, act II, page 71:

‘No, come in,’ he said. ‘Martin, right? Have a seat.’ […] ‘Thank you, no, I won’t.’ He moved inside a little more.

2015, Amy Andrews, Limbo, Sydney, N.S.W.: Escape Publishing, →ISBN:

An expression of gratitude or politeness in response to something done or given.

دستت درد نکند (dastet dard nakonad, literally “lest your hand hurt”)

دستت درد نکنه (dastet dard nakone, literally “lest your hand hurt”)

gun robh math agaibh

Argyll; to one person, formal; to more than one person


thanks

From Middle English thanks, thankes, from Old English þancas (“thanks”), from Proto-Germanic *þankōs, nominative plural of *þankaz (“thought, gratitude”), from Proto-Indo-European *teng- (“to think, feel”). More at thank.

der

Could you give me a hand, please? — Yes, sure. — Thanks.

Your last gift, for which thanks, made my family so happy.

Thanks, courteous wall: Jove shield thee well for this!

c. 1595–1596 (date written), William Shakespeare, “A Midsommer Nights Dreame”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies: Published According to the True Originall Copies (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act V, scene i]:

Used to express appreciation or gratitude.

dankie

used to express appreciation or gratitude


thanks

After all I’ve done, a simple acknowledgment is all the thanks I get?


bless you

Short for God bless you, from Middle English God blesse you, God blisse you.

Short for (may) God bless you: said as a short prayer for the recipient.


gesundheit

From German Gesundheit (literally “health”), from gesund (“healthy”). The adjective is cognate with English sound, from Old English ġesund (“sound, safe, healthy”).

cog

Everybody Was at It, and There Was No One to Say Gesundheit

1897 July 24, “SNEEZES INTERRUPTED COURT”, in The Albany Law Journal, volume 56, number 4, page 67:

I used to play a game with David and Douggie, Dennis and Drew — stop their sneezes midsniff just by placing my pinkie finger against their nostrils and saying gesundheit before it was time.

2000, Abby Frucht, Polly's Ghost: A Novel (Fiction), Scribner, →ISBN, page 55:

(Canada, US) Said to someone who has just sneezed.


merci

Borrowed from French merci (“thank you”).

bor+

Few games are won without the merci. In the final deal a King above a card of the same suit automatically blocks the game, and the merci should be used to free such a card.

1995, Peter Arnold, The Book of Card Games, →ISBN, page 15:

An extra card or set of cards that is allowed to play at the end of various card games.


God bless you

From Middle English God blesse you, God blisse you.

“But she will be gained by some one else. And if that some one should be the very he whom, of all others, I could least bear—But I will not stay to rob myself of all your compassionate good-will, by shewing that where I have most injured I can least forgive. Good bye,—God bless you!” And with these words, he almost ran out of the room.

1811, [Jane Austen], chapter VIII, in Sense and Sensibility […], volume III, London: […] C[harles] Roworth, […], and published by T[homas] Egerton, […], →OCLC, pages 185–186:

Short for May God bless you; said as a short prayer, benediction, or valediction for the recipient.

حَيَّاك اَللّٰه

said as a short prayer for the recipient


dankie

Borrowed from Afrikaans dankie, from Dutch dank je.


mercy buckets

Jocular malapropism of French merci beaucoup (“thanks a lot”); influenced by buckets of (“lots of”).

"Well, anyhow, thanks a lot, Mr. Dumont," he added. "Mercy buckets, as you French say."

1929 "Franklin W. Dixon" (Penguin) Hardy Boys 7: The Secret of the Caves, Chapter 16, p.89

Mercy buckets—a pleasure doing business with you, dude.

2008 Jonathan Nasaw (Simon and Schuster) Fear Itself p.187