thank you in italian

Thank You in Italian: 9 Ways To Express Your Gratitude Like a Local

Expressing thanks in Italian is as easy as saying grazie!

Of course, you can say “thanks so much,” “no, thank you” and even “thanks for nothing” in Italian as well.

In this post, I’ll teach you exactly how to say “thank you” in Italian according to different situations and contexts.

So, if you’re planning a trip to Italy or just want to expand your Italian a little, you’ll definitely be grateful for this list.

Contents

How To Say “Thank You” in ItalianGroup of four people smiling, with two people in the foreground shaking hands.

1. The Most Common: Grazie

The simplest form, grazie (thank you) can be used in everyday interactions.

When the barista gives you the espresso you ordered, you’ll say grazie. 

After you’ve finished your espresso, you might say this as you leave the café:

Grazie, buona giornata. (Thank you, have a good day.)

An important note about the pronunciation of grazie: the e is essential. Leaving the “e” off is a common mistake that can quickly become a bad habit, so be careful!

And, regardless of the region or dialect, the basic word for “thank you” in Italian is always grazie. Don’t confuse it with the singular form grazia (grace), which is never used to express gratitude!

2. The Most Grateful: Grazie Mille  

Grazie mille (thanks a million) adds more flourish to your expression of gratitude. If a friend has given you half of her sandwich because you forgot your lunch, you’ll want to say:

Grazie mille, stavo morendo di fame! (Thanks a million, I was starving!)

It’s also easy to use grazie mille sarcastically. Perhaps your spouse has just given you a stack of bills that need to be paid. Now’s the time to roll your eyes and sigh, Grazie mille.

3. The Less Formal: Molte Grazie  

The adjective molto means “much,” “very” and “many,” so molte grazie means “thank you very much.”

In Italian, adjectives must agree in gender and quantity. So the basic form molto becomes molte when used with grazie to become molte grazie (thank you very much).

If you really want to add emphasis, you can add an -issime to the end of molte.

For example, if you’re super grateful that your friend took great care of your dog, you could say:

Moltissime grazie! (Thank you very super much!)

4. The Potentially Sarcastic One: Tante Grazie 

When earnest and heartfelt, tante grazie is really no different than molte grazie.

But be careful: If said in the wrong tone, or especially if the words are switched around to grazie tante, it comes across as sarcastic. It’s like saying “thanks for nothing.” 

For example, if a colleague has withheld information about an important meeting, now’s the time to say:

Grazie tante per la tua schiettezza! (Thank you so much for your forthrightness!)

5. To Politely Decline: No, Grazie  

When declining an offer, a simple no, grazie is sufficient.

Vuoi un tè? (Would you like a tea?)

No, grazie. (No, thank you.)

6. To Say “Thank you for”: Grazie per/di…  

If you want to thank someone for something specific, you’ll begin with grazie per and complete the phrase with a noun.

Perhaps you have an amazing colleague who covered for you when you arrived an hour late to work.

Grazie per la tua discrezione. (Thank you for your discretion.)

You can also use grazie per with a verb. Imagine your friend comes to visit you. She even cooks for you! To really thank her you can say:

Grazie per aver cucinato per me! (Thank you for cooking for me!)

Grazie per essere la mia migliore amica! (Thank you for being my best friend!)

Similarly, you can use grazie di before a verb. If you wish to continue thanking your amazing colleague or friend, you can say:

Grazie di avermi aiutato. (Thank you for helping me.)

On the other hand, if you’re feeling a bit sarcastic and want to say “thanks for nothing,” you can use grazie di niente!

Maybe the repairman that was supposed to fix your refrigerator just ended up breaking the freezer too. In your (understandable) frustration, you might say to him, Grazie di niente! (Thanks for nothing!)

7. The Extra Polite One: Ti Ringrazio  

The verb “to thank” in Italian is ringraziare. This verb is used when thanking someone in a more formal situation.

You can use ti ringrazio when you’re especially grateful for something done by someone you’re close with. Maybe your brother donated his kidney to you! This would be the time to say:

Ti ringrazio dal profondo del mio cuore per il rene! (I thank you from the bottom of my heart for the kidney!)

And, like our #5 phrase, ti ringrazio is also a polite way to decline something offered to you.

8. The Formal One: La Ringrazio  

When thanking a superior for anything, the most respectful form of thanks is a simple:

La ringrazio! (I thank you!)

If your friend’s grandmother bakes you a cake for your birthday, you’d want to say:

La ringrazio per la bellissima torta! (I thank you for the beautiful cake!)

9. To Thank a Group: Vi Ringrazio  

On occasion, you may wish to formally thank a large group of people. Maybe you’ve just won an award. You’d say:

Vi ringrazio per questo onore! (I thank you for this honor!)

Or perhaps you’ve been nominated for class president. This would be a perfect opportunity to say:

Vi ringrazio per questa opportunità! (I thank you for this opportunity!)

As you can see, there are many different ways to say grazie in Italian—all of which depend on the context.

A good way of becoming familiar with these phrases is to consume native media, so you can see how they’re actually used. There are plenty of videos on YouTube, or else for a little extra learning support you could try a language learning program like FluentU.

FluentU has a ton of interesting, authentic videos in their curated library which cover topics like music videos, vlogs and inspiring talks. Each video comes with interactive subtitles which you just need to hover over to see definitions, pronunciation details and other important information.

By seeing how words and phrases are used by native speakers in different contexts, you’ll pick up on different shades of meaning—and ultimately develop more natural-sounding Italian. 

Plus, the program is available on iOS and Android so you can study wherever you go. 

More Ways To Express Thanks in ItalianA woman opens a gift while standing next to a smiling man.

Apart from the standard phrases and situations of showing gratitude that we have covered already, here is a list of ways to express your thanks that don’t specifically include grazie (thanks) or ringraziare (the verb meaning “to thank”). 

How To Respond to “Thank You” in Italian woman-thanking-a-man-while-passing-a-notebook

Now that you know how to thank in Italian, it’s important to learn how to respond.

As there are so many ways to thank in Italian, you can imagine there are also many ways to respond! Let’s have a look at some of them:

Common Questions for Thank You in Italian question-mark-speech-bubble-isolated-on-yellow-background

Do you say grazie or grazia?

This depends on what you want to say, as they have completely different meanings!

Grazie is the proper term used to express thanks, for whatever situation—regardless of masculine or feminine forms.

Grazia, however, translates to “grace” and is more commonly found as a woman’s name.

What is the Italian word for thanks?

As we’ve seen in this post, there are lots of words for thanks.

But when in doubt, give your thanks in Italian with grazie! It’s straightforward and the popular go-to for expressing gratitude.

Is it molto grazie or molte grazie?

To say “thank you very much” in Italian, you would say molte grazie. 

As we mentioned earlier in the post, molto on its own is just an adjective that means “much,” “very” and “many.” But, as the rules of Italian dictate, adjectives agree on gender (and quantity).  

This means that when molto is used with grazie, it becomes molte grazie!

 

In any country and in any language, learning to express gratitude is essential.

Kindness, politeness and gratitude go a long way anywhere in the world.

Thank you for reading this post on how to say thank you in Italian—now go out there and be kind to one another!

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