“THANKS”: 5 Common Expressions (that don’t all mean the same thing!)

Hi there, my name is Emma, and in today's video, we are going to learn some great expressions

with the word "thank you" or "thanks" in them.

So, many of you know the word "thank you", but did you know the expressions "thanks anyway"

or "thank you though" or "thanks but no thanks"?

Even though these expressions have the word "thank you" or "thanks" in them, they actually

have a different meaning than "thank you".

So, in today's lesson, I'm going to teach you the many different meanings of these words.

So, let's get started by talking about the most basic, which you probably already know,

which is "thank you".

So, "thank you" is one of the most common expressions we use in English.

What does it mean?

Well, we use it when someone helps us or does something nice for us.

How do we use it?

Well, we can just say "thank you".

We can say "thank you very much", or if there is something specific we want to thank a person

for, we can say "thank you for something".

So, for example, "thank you for your help", "thank you for the gift", "thank you for coming

to my party".

So, this is, again, one of the most common things we use in English, and the answer to

"thank you" in English is "you're welcome" or "it's no problem".

Well, sometimes we might want to speak a little bit more informally, especially if we're talking

with our friends or our family.

So, another way to say "thank you" is to say "thanks".

So, notice we don't have "you" after that, we just say "thanks" with an S. Again, this

is not formal, so I usually don't use this in writing business emails or, you know, business

letters.

It's informally used often with friends and family.

So, how do we use this?

Well, for example, I can use it on its own, like "thanks", or if there's something specific

I want to say "thank you" for, I can say "thanks for something".

So, for example, "thanks for your help", "thanks for the gift", "thanks for coming".

So, these are the most common expressions using "thank" or "thank you".

Now, let's look at some of the other expressions I mentioned, including "thanks anyway", "thanks

though", and "thanks, but no thanks".

Okay, so we've just talked about the expressions "thank you" and "thanks", and we're going

to look at some more "thank" expressions, but before we do that, I just wanted to call

your attention to the "th" in "thanks" and "thank you", and "thanks anyway".

Many students have trouble with "th".

It's a difficult sound.

In English, when we pronounce "th", our tongue has to come a little out of our mouth and

touch our top teeth.

So, I'll show you what this looks like.

Notice my tongue comes out and it touches the top teeth.

So, when I am pronouncing "thanks", I want you to pay attention to what my mouth is doing,

because this can help your pronunciation, too.

If you don't say "thanks", it might sound like "tanks", which is a totally different

word that has different meanings.

So, let's now look at the next expression that has the word "thanks" in it.

We have "thanks anyway" or "thanks anyways", so I'll tell you the difference between these

two in a moment, but first let's talk about "thanks anyway".

What does this mean?

It has a different meaning than "thank you".

When we say "thanks anyway", we use this when we ask someone for help and they can't give

us the help we need.

So, for example, maybe you go to a store and you ask where they, you know, keep the apples.

You want to buy apples, you say, "Oh, hi, I'd like to buy some apples.

Where are the apples?"

And maybe the store has no apples, so they say, "Sorry, we're out of apples.

No apples today."

Your response would be, "Oh, thanks anyway."

So, again, you didn't get the help you wanted, but you still, in English, will say something

like "thanks anyway".

So, let's look at another example of this.

So, we have here Jack and Jill.

So, Jack and Jill are friends.

Jack says to Jill, "Hey, Jill, can you drive me to the airport?"

And Jill says, "Mm, I can't.

My car is at the mechanic."

So, this means Jill's car is not working; it's at the mechanic to get fixed.

So, Jill doesn't have her car.

So, what does Jack say?

Well, Jack says, "Oh, thanks anyway."

Did Jill actually help Jack?

No, Jill did not help Jack, but Jack still says "thanks anyway".

Okay.

So, what about "thanks any ways"?

You might hear English speakers say this.

"Thanks anyway" is the more formal or more correct expression, but if you like slang,

and I love slang, you might actually say "thanks anyways", which is just the informal way or

the more slang version of "thanks anyway".

So, you can use either of these.

This is a little bit more formal, and this is more slang.

All right, so now let's look at some other expressions.

Let's look at "thanks, though" and "thanks, but no thanks".

Okay, so our next expression might be a little difficult for some of you to pronounce, and

that's because "thanks, though" has two th's in it.

So, if you have trouble with the th sound, this expression might be a little more difficult

for you.

So, it's an important expression.

We use it a lot in conversation.

What does it mean when we say "thanks, though"?

Well, before we get to the meaning, I just want to focus a little bit on the pronunciation.

You might already know this, but in English, O-U-G-H has different ways we can pronounce

it depending on the word.

In this word, "though", it sounds just like the letter O, "though".

So, even though you have these four letters, this is how I would spell it for pronunciation

reasons.

The real spelling is this one, of course.

So, if you're writing it, write this, but this is what the pronunciation would look

like, "though".

So, "thanks, though", what does it mean?

Well, we use it when someone wants to help us.

They offer us something, maybe they try to give us something, or maybe they want to do

something for us, but we don't want the help.

For different reasons, maybe we don't need the help, maybe we actually don't want the

help, but the problem is, we can't just say, "No, I don't want your help," or "No, I don't

want that.

I don't need that."

If you say this, it might sound a little rude and impolite.

So, "thanks, though" is the polite way to say, "I don't want the help or your offer."

So, let's look at an example of this.

So, we have here our good friend, Mickey.

Mickey says to Minnie, "Hey, Minnie, can I buy you a coffee?"

Well, Minnie already has a coffee.

She knows she has a coffee at her office, so she doesn't want the coffee.

So instead of saying, "I don't want a coffee," which might sound a little rude, Minnie says,

"I have one, so I have a coffee.

Thanks though."

So, you see, "thanks though" means you appreciate the offer, even though you're not taking the

offer.

Let's look at a couple more examples of "thanks though".

Alright, so now let's look at some more examples of the word "thanks though".

So, we have here Barbie, and what does Barbie say?

Well, Barbie says to Ken, her boyfriend, she says, "I'm going to the beach.

Want to come?"

Well, Ken, unfortunately, doesn't want to come.

So, what does he say?

He wants to be polite.

He can't say, "I don't want to go, Barbie."

So what does he say?

He says, "Oh, I can't.

I have work.

Thanks though for the invite."

So, again, this is where something is offered.

In this case, Barbie offers Ken an invitation to the beach.

Ken doesn't or can't go, so he says, "I can't.

I have work.

Thanks though."

Now, we have Tony and Jen.

Tony is at Jen's house, and he sees Jen cooking, and he says, "Can I give you a hand with dinner?"

This means, "Can I help you make dinner?"

And Jen says, "It's already cooking.

Thanks though."

So, Jen is not taking Tony's help.

You know, it could be true.

Dinner's already cooking.

She doesn't need his help.

So, Tony offered, Jen refuses the help, so she uses "thanks though".

So, now let's look at another example of an expression with "thanks".

We're going to now look at "thanks, but no thanks".

Okay.

So, this might be the funniest expression I'm going to teach you today.

The expression is "thanks, but no thanks".

So, you have to be careful with this expression, and the reason is it has multiple meanings.

So, it has different meanings, and you can usually tell the meaning based on a person's

voice or their tone, so how they say it.

So, I'm going to give you some examples of "thanks, but no thanks".

So, the first meaning is a little impolite.

So, I would not use this with my boss.

I might not, you know, it depends on the situation, but it can sound rude, so you have to be careful.

And it means a strong rejection, so this means you're really saying no, okay?

It's a very strong no.

So, let me give you an example.

So, for some people, they are afraid of bugs, and insects, and spiders.

That's how some people feel about bugs and insects.

So nowadays, some people actually might cook using insects, like grasshoppers and crickets.

So, imagine this.

We'll go back to Jen and Tony.

Jen says, "Oh, I cooked a dish with insects.

I cooked some food with grasshoppers in it.

Do you want some?"

And Tony, who does not like insects and thinks that they're gross, says, "Ugh, thanks, but

no thanks."

So, this is a strong rejection, he's saying, "No, absolutely not."

Again, tone is important.

You can also use this when you're telling a story about something that happened, and

you want to show to your audience or the listener that you didn't like something.

So, for example, imagine you have a teacher, and your teacher gives you homework on Christmas.

You might say to your friends, "Ugh, my teacher wants us to study and do our homework on Christmas.

Thanks but no thanks."

So, again, it has a little bit of attitude, "Thanks, but no thanks."

So, again, this expression shows that you disagree with something strongly.

Now, we can also use this, "Thanks but no thanks", a little bit more politely, but again,

it depends on our voice and on our tone and the situation.

If my mother says, "Emma, do you want a little bit more salad?", I might say, "Ugh, thanks

but no thanks."

And because of the way I use my voice, it doesn't sound rude.

So, your tone for this word or this expression really matters.

If my mom offers me salad, and she says, "Emma, do you want some salad?", and I say, "Ugh,

mom, thanks but no thanks", then that's a strong rejection.

So, it depends on how you say it.

Now, one more thing I want to add is "thanks but no thanks" is a funny expression, and

so it's actually been made into many GIFs, or some people will pronounce this as GIFs,

or memes.

So, if you're somebody that likes to use memes and GIFs, you can search "thanks but no thanks"

and see many different examples of GIFs using this.

All right, well, so let's now look at some examples of all of these, and let's practice

using them in some actual questions.

All right, so let's practice what you have learned.

So, I have your three questions, and I want you to fill in the blanks with either "thanks

though", "thanks anyway", "thanks but no thanks", or just "thanks" or "thank you".

So, think about the context and the situation, and which answer is the most appropriate.

So, my first question, George says to his friend Sheila, "Hey, I have an extra movie

ticket.

Do you want it?"

And Sheila says, "No, I have work tonight."

So, what does Sheila say?

"Thanks, though."

So, again, "thanks, though" we use when we are offered something, but we don't want it,

or we can't use it.

So, I say, "Thanks, though."

Okay, so our next question, the president wants to raise taxes by 500%.

So, what do the people say?

Are the people happy with this?

I don't think so.

I think the people would be very angry, and they would probably show a strong rejection.

So, what do you think the people will say?

"Thanks, but no thanks."

So, the people say, "Thanks, Mr. President, but no thanks."

So, "Thanks, but no thanks."

Okay, so our final example, Paul from the Beatles asks Ringo to play at his concert.

And Paul's very excited, he says, "Ringo, can you play at my concert?"

But Ringo, unfortunately, is busy.

He's having dinner with the Queen of England, so he can't make it.

So, Ringo says, "No, sorry, I can't."

What does Paul say?

So, again, Ringo's not helping him with the concert, so Paul would say, "Thanks, anyway."

Because he's not getting the help he's asking for.

"Thanks, anyway," but he still wants to be polite.

And there you have it.

So, for more practice, you can come visit our website at www.engvid.com, and there you

will find a longer quiz where you can practice everything you learned in this video, all

the different expressions we covered.

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So, thank you so much for watching, and until next time, take care.