дякую

Thanking

Level 1Sounds Like dâkuû

Use дякую to express gratitude. It is a verb that requires the person being thanked to be in the Dative case and the reason for thanks to be introduced by за + Accusative.

How It Works

1. The Person Being Thanked (Dative Case)
In Ukrainian, you don't 'thank someone' (Accusative); you 'give thanks to someone.' Therefore, the person receiving the thanks must be in the Dative case.

  • Дякую тобі (to you, informal)
  • Дякую вам (to you, formal/plural)

2. The Reason for Thanks (за + Accusative)
To explain what you are thankful for, use the preposition за followed by the Accusative case.

  • Дякую за каву (for the coffee)
  • Дякую за допомогу (for the help)

3. Intensifying Gratitude
You can add adverbs to show more emotion:

  • Дуже дякую (Thank you very much)
  • Щиро дякую (Sincerely thank you)

4. Conjugation
Since it is a verb, it changes based on who is speaking. While дякую (I thank) is most common, you will often hear дякуємо (we thank) in group settings.

Examples (4)

  1. Дякую вам за допомогу.

    Thank you (formal) for the help.

    Word by Word: I-thank to-you for help.

    Uses the formal 'вам' (Dative) and 'за' with the Accusative noun 'допомогу'.

  2. Дуже дякую тобі за подарунок!

    Thank you very much (informal) for the gift!

    Word by Word: Very I-thank to-you for gift!

    The adverb 'дуже' intensifies the thanks, and 'тобі' is the informal Dative form of 'ти'.

  3. Ми дякуємо за вашу підтримку.

    We thank [you] for your support.

    Word by Word: We thank for your support.

    Shows the first-person plural form 'дякуємо' used when a group is expressing gratitude.

  4. Дякую мамі за обід.

    I thank mom for lunch.

    Word by Word: I-thank to-mom for lunch.

    Demonstrates a noun (мама) changing to the Dative case (мамі) when being thanked.

Common Mistakes

  • Using the Accusative case for the person being thanked.

    Дякую тебе.
    Дякую тобі.

    English and Russian speakers often use the Accusative (тебе), but Ukrainian requires the Dative (тобі).

  • Using the preposition 'для' to express the reason.

    Дякую для допомоги.
    Дякую за допомогу.

    The preposition 'для' means 'for the sake of.' To express the reason for gratitude, you must use 'за'.

How It Connects

Tap a pattern to see what it builds on and what it leads to.

дякуюLevel 1Thanking

Learn This First

To understand the use of 'дякую' (thank you), it is helpful to know the standard response 'будь ласка' (you are welcome) to complete the basic social exchange.

Words in This Pattern

дякувати