Even with all of the modern ways to write messages to one another today, the handwritten card or note is still a relatively popular way to express gratitude in English. Cards expressing thanks can be simple or complex, and you might use formal or informal language. The type of card you write can depend on the situation or the person to whom you address it. Although there is no need to overthink things, there is a little more to writing a proper thank-you note than you might see on the surface.
Our goal here is to provide a set of guidelines that anyone might be able to use in order to craft thanks messages for any event. In doing so, we will go over some of the important aspects of how to write these notes properly. There are very few hard rules, but we can provide some tips that might help you outline your cards in a process that you can streamline quickly, or you can use our hints to adapt any kind of note to the situation or words to say thank you. We have also touched upon tips for parents and teachers to help children write thank you messages to their teachers, grandparents, siblings, or family members.
Helping Kids Write Thank You Messages
At any time of year, it's important to express gratitude for all the wonderful things people do for us. Here are some tips for parents, teachers, and more to engage children in building writing skills and expressing thanks at the same time.
- Choose a template for your thank you message. This could match your birthday invites, be themed, or involve your children or students and have them choose what they would like to write on. One great activity is to make your own using card and colored paper.
- Talk to your students or child about what they are saying thank you for before you start writing.
- As kids learn to write, there are bound to be mistakes along the way, so have plenty of spare paper.
- Get creative! You can involve younger kids even if they're not quite ready to write yet. If you make homemade cards, have them put a painted handprint on the card or even a cute little drawing. This way, you're introducing the concept of saying thanks, and they're having fun at the same time.
- Show your children or students an example. This could be one you've written or an example from online.
- Guide kids through what goes into a thank-you note. Here is a small template you can use to inspire you.
Thank You Words For Kids: Play-to-Learn
Use this list to inspire your kids or use it to write thank-you notes to the little ones in your life. The vocabulary is simple and straightforward.
- Thank you for your help.
- I really liked the gift you gave me.
- Thank you for making me feel special.
- Thank you for my present.
- Thank you for spending time with me.
- It was such a fun surprise!
- Thanks for your help
- You mean the world to me.
Writing the Proper Words To Say Thank You
We mentioned already that the process for writing a good note of thanks might be more complex than it seems on the surface. However, there are just a few basic guidelines that you would need to keep in mind. Once you memorize them, or once you write enough thanks messages of your own, you will be able to do this for any occasion or person. We can break up our guide into bullet points below for your convenience.
- Start by expressing your gratitude in general.
- Name the person to whom you want to express the words to say thank you.
- Once you’ve noted the person, make sure you mention the gift, event, or action in question.
- Try to think of a specific way in which you’ve benefited from the generosity of the person to whom you are giving the thank-you cards.
- Don’t make your thanks messages all about the particular gift or action. Instead, mention how much you look forward to seeing or interacting with the person again in the near future.
Thank-You Note Examples for Events
The structure of any given words to say thank you might change based on the topic for which you are expressing your gratitude. We’ll start with some examples that can help you write proper messages for events that you’ve attended.
When you are the host
You can write about how grateful you are that the person attended your event. This is true even if there was no precedent for giving gifts.
Gifts
Should gifts be relevant here, try to mention the specific things that each person gave you in your thank-you words to them.
For an additional effect, you might talk about how you plan to use the gift in the near future, or you can offer to send a photo of you or someone else making use of the thoughtful gift.
Mention the event
It is a good idea to mention the particular event as a reminder.
Some examples of things we’ve talked about above might include:
- Thank you so much for attending the corporate party at the office after hours. We know that your evenings can get busy with other obligations.
- Thanks very much for celebrating our anniversary with us. We appreciate the gift you provided, and we’re proud to have you as a friend for so many years.
Words To Say Thank You for Hospitality
Someone who is hospitable to you might invite you into their home. While this is something of an event, it is not quite the same thing as being grateful for attending anything formal. However, it is still an excellent opportunity to show how much you appreciate the other party’s kindness. Depending on how well you know them, you might use formal or informal language when you craft the thank-you note. You might write any of the following:
- Thank you for letting us spend an evening in your beautiful home. Since we just moved to this neighborhood, it is nice to get to know some people.
- We really appreciated the nice surprise of dinner at your place the other night. It had been a long time since we all saw each other, and it’s great to catch up.
- I just wanted you to know that letting me stay with you these past few days has been a real blessing. It has helped me in more ways than I can express here, but I am very grateful.
- Thank you for taking care of me when I was down. It was nice not to have to worry about being alone during my time recuperating.
- Hanging out with you today was great, and I am glad we are still friends.
Special Gift Thank-You Cards
All you need to do for this category is mention the gift specifically.
- Thank you for the wedding gift of the new lamp. It will look great in our home.
- I want to say thanks for giving me the clothes the other day. When I was in need, you were there.
- The nice plants waiting for me were totally unexpected, and I wanted to thank you so much!
- It is clear how well you know me thanks to this book you’ve given to me.
- Thank you for making new memories with me.
Thanks Messages for Help
We list some examples of these kinds of notes below.
- Thank you for helping me with the repairs the other day.
- Thank you for agreeing to help me pick out a dress for the party.
- This is just a little thank-you card to say how grateful I am that you helped me prepare for the big event.
- Thank you for taking some of the load off me with my responsibilities.
- I want to thank you for helping me get through a tough time.
Thank-You Words for Professionals
These kinds of thank-you note examples might include the following:
- Thank you for answering all of my questions about your company during the interview.
- Our talk the other day made me more certain than ever that I’d like to work with you, and I wanted to say thank you.
- I appreciate that you took the time to talk with me about the position available in your company.
- I am very grateful that you provided an introduction I could use to get my foot in the door.
- Thanks to your efforts, I am finally able to pursue my dream career. I couldn’t have done it without you.