Please

“Please” and “thank you” are commonly used in polite interactions with others. We use “please” when asking for something and “thanks” or “thank you” to express gratitude.

“Please call me back.”
[the other person calls them back]
“Thanks for calling me back.”

We also use “please” when confirming someone’s offer:

“Do you want another icecream?”
– “Yes, please!”

The British sometimes use the informal “ta” to thank someone:

“Can you take out the trash?”
– “I took out the trash.”
“Ta! (Look at me, I’m British!)”

In these scenarios, only the person requesting something uses polite language. How can the other party respond in kind?

When fulfilling a request, we want to let the person that asked something of us know we are glad to have helped them. Germans would reply with “bitte”, so they often use its translation in these situations:

“Thanks for calling me back.”
– “Please!”

This response is incorrect, and it sounds confusing to native speakers. The only correct use of “please” is in making requests, not responding to thanks. It is not used as a response in the same way the German “bitte” would be. When replying to someone’s thanks, there are several expressions available to us:

• “No problem!”
• “My pleasure!”
• “Don’t mention it!”
• “You’re welcome!”

We use “you’re welcome” most often. It sounds odd to Germans, who associate different interactions with the word “welcome”. Here we use it not to greet someone or welcome them into our home. When using it to reply to someone’s thanks, “you’re welcome” translates to “gern geschehen” or “bitte sehr”.

This might take some getting used to, but it will definitely level up your English again. You’re welcome.