thank

verb

ˈthaŋk 

thanked; thanking; thanks

transitive verb

1

: to express gratitude to

thanked her for the present

—used in the phrase thank you usually without a subject to politely express gratitude

Thank you for your consideration.

or sometimes to emphasize a preceding statement especially by implying that it is not subject to question

likes her job just fine, thank you

—used in such phrases as thank God, thank goodness usually without a subject to express gratitude or more often only the speaker's or writer's pleasure or satisfaction in something

2

: to hold responsible

had only himself to thank for his loss

thanker noun

Examples of thank in a Sentence

I want to thank everyone who helped today.

There's no need to thank me. Anyone would have done the same.

Recent Examples on the Web

Taking the stage on Sunday to bestow longtime friend Swift with the inaugural MTV VMA Artist Director Honors, Dakota Johnson hugged the award’s winner, who kicked off her acceptance speech by thanking MTV for offering a platform for music videos. — Entertainment Weekly, 28 Sep. 2026

Kramer thanked YouTube native Parsons for his film Backroom, which helped energize young audiences, and also noted how the youth demographic flocks to Academy screenings of classic cinema. — Andreas Wiseman, Deadline, 28 Sep. 2026

In a post following the video’s debut, Swift thanked her friends and collaborators. — Deborah Day, Los Angeles Times, 28 Sep. 2026

And lastly, thank you to the VMAs for giving us a World Premiere at the place where celebrating music videos became a thing. — Chris Willman, Variety, 28 Sep. 2026

Word History

Etymology

Middle English, from Old English thancian; akin to Old English thanc gratitude — more at thanks entry 1

First Known Use

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing thank

• have (someone or something) to thank for (something)
• thank God/goodness/heaven(s)/the Lord
• thank one's lucky stars
• thank-you
• thank-you-ma'am

Rhymes for thank

• banc
• bank
• blank
• clank
• crank
• dank
• drank
• flank
• franc
• hank
• lank
• plank

Kids Definition

thank

verb

ˈthaŋk 

1

: to express gratitude to

thanked her for the present

2

: to hold responsible

had only myself to thank for my loss