How to Give Thanks
This is the time of year when we often say thanks, but writing out this expression isn't as straightforward as you may think. Test your knowledge here.
What are the correct words to use here, according to Associated Press style: "I just sent her a _______, and the team sent their _________ as well."
thank-you, thank-you's
thank you, thank-you's
thank-you, thank you's
thank you, thank yous
And the correct answer is option one, “thank-you, thank-you's.” Although the commonly said and written verb phrase “thank you” is spelled as two separate words, the noun phrase is properly spelled as two words connected by a hyphen, as in “She never received a thank-you for her good deed.” Less straightforward is the plural form of the noun phrase, which is “thank-you’s,” in Associated Press style. The general rule for the styles of both the Associated Press and the Chicago Manual of Style is to add an “s” when forming the plural of a word used as a word. For example, “He wants a tally of all the yeses and nos.” In some cases, though, an apostrophe may be added to the plural of a word used as a word to aid comprehension. For instance, “There are two 'a’s' in both names in the advertising agency name ‘Saatchi & Saatchi.’” Without the apostrophe, this would confusingly be “There are two 'as' in both names in the advertising agency name ‘Saatchi & Saatchi.’” With the plural of “thank-you,” AP style has made the choice to include an apostrophe for clarity, but in Chicago style, the plural is “thank yous.” With all this said, I want to give a thank-you for reading this post. 😉