thank
verbUK /ˈθæŋk/ · /ˈfaŋk/
Etymology
From Middle English thanken, thankien (“to express gratitude, give thanks; to congratulate, rejoice with, or wish joy to; to extol, praise; to hold responsible for”), from Old English þancian, þoncian (“to thank”), from Proto-West Germanic *þankōn, from Proto-Germanic *þankōną (“to thank”), from *þankaz (see etymology 1) + *-ōną (suffix forming infinitives of verbs from nouns). Cognates Cognate with Scots thank (“to thank”), Saterland Frisian tonkje (“to thank”), Cimbrian dånkan (“to thank”), Dutch, German, and Luxembourgish danken (“to thank”), Vilamovian danka, daŋka, daonka (“to thank”), Yiddish דאַנקען (danken, “to thank”), Danish and Norwegian Bokmål takke (“to thank”), Faroese takka (“to thank”), Icelandic þakka (“to thank”), Swedish tacka (“to thank”).
To express appreciation or gratitude toward (someone or something).
- She thanked him for the lift.
- [H]aſt thou no ſhame to deſpiſe that perſone, to whom onely and no man els, thou art bounde to thanke, euen for this veraie pointe, that thou ſetteſt ſo moche by thy peinted ſheathe?1564 February, Erasmus, “The Saiynges of Diogenes the Cynike”, in Nicolas Udall [i.e., Nicholas Udall], transl., Apophthegmes, that is to Saie, Prompte, Quicke, Wittie and Sentẽcious Saiynges, […], London: […] Ihon Kingston, →OCLC, book I, folio 106, recto, paragraph 190:
4 more examples
- I can eate no meate, I thanke you.c. 1597 (date written), William Shakespeare, […] [T]he Merrie Wiues of Windsor. […] (First Quarto), London: […] T[homas] C[reede] for Arthur Ihonson, […], published 1602, →OCLC, [Act I, scene i], signature B, recto:
- The naked Negro, panting at the line, / Baſks in the glare, or ſtems the tepid vvave, / And thanks his Gods for all the good they gave.1764 December 19 (indicated as 1765), Oliver Goldsmith, The Traveller, or A Prospect of Society. A Poem. […], London: […] J[ohn] Newbery, […], →OCLC, page 5:
- [S]ae laigh I need na bovv, / For, Lord be thankit, I can plough; / And vvhen I dovvna yoke a naig, / Then, Lord be thankit, I can beg; […]1793, Robert Burns, “A Dedication to G[avin] H[amilton] Esq”, in Poems, Chiefly in the Scottish Dialect, 2nd edition, volume II, Edinburgh: […] T[homas] Cadell, […], and William Creech, […], published 1793, →OCLC, page 66:
- That his Majesty has good subjects in England, my Lord Duke, he is bound to thank God and the laws—that he has subjects in Scotland, I think he may thank God and the sword.1818 July 25, Jedediah Cleishbotham [pseudonym; Walter Scott], chapter XII, in Tales of My Landlord, Second Series, […] (The Heart of Mid-Lothian), volume II, Edinburgh: […] [James Ballantyne and Co.] for Archibald Constable and Company, →OCLC, page 310:
In the future tense in the form one will thank someone to do something, chiefly expressing a command or criticism: to request that (someone) do something.
- I’ll thank you not to smoke in my house!
- Our readers would not thank us for going into the badgerings which had for some time annoyed the chancellor on the subject of arrears in his court.1844, “Art. IV.—The Public and Private Life of Lord Chancellor Eldon, including His Correspondence, and Selections from the Anecdote Book, Written by Himself. By Horace Twiss, Esq., One of Her Majesty’s Counsel. 3 vols. 8vo. London, 1844. [book review]”, in John Taylor Coleridge, editor, The Quarterly Review, volume LXXIV, number CXLVII, London: John Murray, […], →OCLC, page 104:
Rare To express appreciation or gratitude for (something).
Figuratively To respond to (someone) out of, or as if out of, appreciation or gratitude.
- I should summon my lord from the Queen's royal presence to do your business, should I?—I were like to be thanked with a horse-whip.1821 January 8, [Walter Scott], chapter I, in Kenilworth; a Romance. […], volume III, Edinburgh: […] Archibald Constable and Co.; and John Ballantyne, […]; London: Hurst, Robinson, and Co., →OCLC, pages 11–12:
Figuratively Chiefly followed by for: to credit or hold (someone or something) responsible, especially for something negative; to blame.
- We can thank global warming for this freak weather.
Obsolete To express gratitude.
- Derived terms
42 terms
bethank, misthank, no thank you, outthank, rethank, thankability, thankable, thanker, thank fuck, thankful, thank god, thank God, thank Goddess, thank Goddesses, thank goddesses, thank God it's Friday, thank gods, thank goodness, thank heavens, thanking, thank one's lucky stars, thank one's stars, thank science, thanksome, thank the Goddesses, thank the goddesses, thank the gods, thank u, thankworthy, thank ya, thank ye, thank ye so very much, thank-you, thank you, thank you all, thank you card, thank-you-ma'am, thank you very much, unthank, unthanked, unthanking, wham-bam-thank-you-ma'am