Thank God!

I'm not sure how it all started or if it is indeed just a recent development, but I keep on hearing people say thanks God when they should be saying thank God (without the s). Here are some examples:

Thanks God the plane landed safely

Thanks God it stopped raining

In English TV programs, I always hear this as 'thank God', without the 's' in thanks. I'm not sure, but I think people are confusing 'thanks, God' and 'thank God'. The former is a declarative statement wherein you are thanking God for something. This is similar to when you say thanks to your friend or your coworker. The latter is an imperative sentence wherein you are asking someone (sometimes yourself) to thank God for something. Most often, it is a treated as a phrase. I'm not completely sure about the grammatical rule behind it, but this is the way I understand it.

Thanks, Abigail! CORRECT

Thanks for the food. CORRECT

Thank God you came. CORRECT

Thank heavens the rain has stopped. CORRECT

Thanks, God. You really came through for me. CORRECT

Thanks, God. You really helped me. CORRECT 

The last two sentences may sound weird to you; that is because we rarely say 'thanks' directly to God, or when we do, we tend to omit 'God'. Normally, we say 'thank you' when we are talking directly to God.

Remember the expression 'thank God it's Friday'? That's right, we don't say 'thanks God it's Friday',

I even heard Imelda Marcos during an interview on the History Channel say thanks God (that something didn't happen). No wonder people think this is grammatically correct!

And don't get me started on the word i-safety. The root word is an English noun, but it has been converted into a Taglish verb! I'm not even sure if that made sense. I first heard this word being used during an election wherein Mel Tiangco was interviewing a teacher, and the teacher said "ni-safety ko ang ballot boxes" (I 'safetied' the ballot boxes). Of course, there is no such word because safety is a noun and not a verb! Just recently, though, I heard someone during an interview use this word and this person spoke reasonably well English! It looks like these words are starting to creep into Philippine English and it probably won't be long before these would become mainstream and be considered correct. I certainly hope I'm wrong.

Want to improve your English grammar? I highly recommend using Grammarly, a virtual grammar tutor. Click here to sign up for free.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

How to Register to DITO Promos Thru Text

Image
I was scratching my head trying to figure out how to register to DITO promos without going through their app. I don't know why but apparently DITO's app needs internet connection to be accessed. How very counterintuitive! Imagine, I was about to register to a Smart Promo just to access their app and subscribe to a promo! Anyway, thank goodness I was able to find a way to subscribe to DITO promos without using their app. Here is how you can register to DITO promos thru text: 1. Text HELP or 0000 to 185. This is free of charge. 2. You will receive a reply with the menu. Choose 'Buy Promo'. 3. Choose your desired promo and confirm your purchase. That's it! Now you just have to wait for a text confirmation or try to check if you can now access the internet. Hope this helps you out!
READ MORE

Zamboanga Hermosa song lyrics

Image
Zamboanga hermosa, preciosa perlita Orgullo de Mindanao Tus bellas dalagas son las que hermosean Tu deliciosa ciudad. Flores y amores que adornan tu jardin Eres la imagen del bello eden Zamboanga hermosa, preciosa perlita Orgullo de Mindanao. Here is a YouTube video of Zamboanga Hermosa by Major Chords (03:30 mark). Zamboanga Hermosa was written by Vicente Orendain during the early part of the 20th century. It's all about the Chabacano de Zamboanga. Bien Chabacano is the first and only blog designed for Chabacano language enthusiasts which discusses and analyzes Chabacano word origins,Chabacano grammar and vocabulary, and so much more! Click here to visit Bien Chabacano now.
READ MORE

Cuando by Comic Relief song lyrics

Image
I could describe Comic Relief in two words: cutting edge. Gone now are the times when all the Chabacano songs that we hear were about the place itself. We finally heard a pop song in Chabacano. What's great is that it's not just any Chabacano pop song, it's a good one too. It doesn't sound corny like the other songs that we hear and it's very modernized so the youth could very much relate to it. Pirmi kita ta oi: bueno pa el maga Bisaya, bale el maga de ila cancion. Pues, ahora tiene ya tambien kita bale canciones en Chabacano. Cuando Lyrics by Comic Relief Que tal man tu ahora? Donde anda? Libre ba tu, puede yo lleva pasea Pasencia conmigo Si bodi man yo Pero precura yo dale contigo el todo Hinde ba tu ta sinti? De jalo lang que sufri Ta canta este cancion Con todo mi corazon pati mi pensamiento Cuando, cuando contesta? Pirmi yo ta resa Que kita dos ay queda Tu dulce palabra Pirmi yo ta espera Cuando tu contesta Si hinde ahora Cunda
READ MORE