Home › Forums › Open Discussion › Why is "no problem" an acceptable replacement for "thank you"?
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March 3, 2011 at 8:27 pm #598163
ZenguyParticipantThis just drive me nuts. I know it is not a problem…most of the time it is your job. I just hate that please and thank you seem to be old fashioned…I guess I will die an old fashioned guy.
Thank you…no problem.
March 3, 2011 at 8:34 pm #719023
JustSarahParticipantUgh, this phenomenon drives me nuts. It’s almost as bad as having to be the on to greet the employee first. The silent cashier movement is terrifying; it’s bad enough when they don’t verbalize the customer’s total (yes, I can read it on the screen, but really?), but not even saying “hi” is just bad service.
March 3, 2011 at 8:59 pm #719024
KBearParticipantI think you mean “no problem” is a REPLY to “thank you”, or “no problem” is a replacement for “you’re welcome”, right?
March 3, 2011 at 8:59 pm #719025
redblackParticipantMarch 3, 2011 at 9:00 pm #719026
redblackParticipantkbear: jinx! you owe me a coke.
March 3, 2011 at 9:10 pm #719027
ZenguyParticipantsorry, you are correct.
March 3, 2011 at 9:15 pm #719028
KBearParticipantNo problem.
March 3, 2011 at 9:24 pm #719029
chrismaParticipantI LOL’d, KBear.
Like urban living (I’m looking at you KM who can’t take the sight of laundry on a line), the use and mis-use of the English language in the current era is not for the faint of heart or easily offended.
But, definately don’t loose any sleep over it. :-)
March 3, 2011 at 9:32 pm #719030
ZenguyParticipantChrisma, your avatar looks like my dachshund at the vet.
March 3, 2011 at 9:44 pm #719031
chrismaParticipantZenguy: It’s an x-ray of a duck, but on the film there’s what appears to be an alien face. You can kind of make it out on the lower right where the leg attaches, but here’s a link to the full image and story
March 3, 2011 at 9:56 pm #719032
ZenguyParticipantMaybe it swallowed a Holloween toy…my dog is only 7.5 lbs and could pass for a duck.
March 3, 2011 at 10:02 pm #719033
dawsonctParticipantAgreed. It’s condescending.
I also agree with you Sarah; I HATE the silent cashier, so I silently and pointedly stare them down. If you aren’t going to talk to me, one of the people who make their jobs necessary, then they will know by my glare that I will join them in their rude little game in hopes they understand what it feels like. Other times I get hyper-chatty, but only in a way that makes it seem like I am responding to them. I am easily amused.
It doesn’t seem to affect their type, though.
March 3, 2011 at 10:17 pm #719034
maplesyrupParticipantWhen you think about it, “you’re welcome” isn’t really a correct response to thank you either.
Language and common expressions change over time. I have no problem with “no problem.”
March 3, 2011 at 10:30 pm #719035
RarelyEverParticipantI agree with maplesyrup. English being my second language it’s always puzzled me why I should be “welcome”, and what that really means – I’d be curious as to the origin of this idiom.
Where I come from the chain of niceties in response to a favor or service is, translated literally:
Requestor: “Can I please get this item?”
Respondent: “Here you are.”
Requestor: “Thanks!”
Respondent: “Please!”
Go figure…
March 3, 2011 at 10:38 pm #719036
ZenguyParticipantStill, this conveys appreciation…”no problem” conveys that I have not been inconvienced, which bothers me.
March 3, 2011 at 10:44 pm #719037
dawsonctParticipantJah, Bitte!
But then, all over Bavaria, a common greeting is Grüss Gott(sp?), which seemed strange for a broadly secular society.
March 3, 2011 at 10:47 pm #719038
dawsonctParticipantExactly zen, it may not be the intent, but it is the result.
It is as though someone is saying your insignificant request and appreciation are meaningless to me.
But that takes way too long to say.
March 3, 2011 at 10:54 pm #719039
JulieMemberWhile I prefer “you’re welcome!”, just because it feels less casual, “no problem” is quite similar to the standard response in other languages. For example, in Spanish, the standard response I was taught is “de nada” (“for nothing”); in Danish, one standard response–and I think, the one regarded as more polite–is “det var so lidt” (“it was so little”).
Language changes, but if there’s a trend you abhor, you can entertain yourself with a quixotic quest to stem the tide….
March 3, 2011 at 10:55 pm #719040
maplesyrupParticipantYou guys are too sensitive.
Would you find the Spanish/French de nada/de rien (“it’s nothing”) insulting as well?
(edit: oops beaten to the punch by Julie)
March 3, 2011 at 11:01 pm #719041
KBearParticipantI don’t think “no problem” means “your request is insignificant” or “you have not been inconvenienced”. I think it means something more like “Please do not be concerned about the inconvenience which your request may have caused me. I do not hold it against you.” But it’s much easier to just say “no problem”, and that’s why it usually doesn’t bother me.
March 3, 2011 at 11:07 pm #719042
datamuseParticipantIn French, I was taught to say “de rien”, which means “it was nothing”. Better? ;)
(Ok, ok, you can also say “je vous en prie” which basically means “please”.)
RarelyEver, I think it’s a shortening of “you are welcome to it”–which can also, depending on the context, mean that the giver is glad to be rid of it! But that usage is pretty infrequent nowadays.
ZenGuy, I can’t find a clear origin for “no problem”, but it apparently replaced “think nothing of it” sometime in the 1960s or 1970s.
March 3, 2011 at 11:08 pm #719043
ZenguyParticipantWell, I will go to my grave as an old fart saying you’re welcome…capitalizing and punctuating my text messages.
March 3, 2011 at 11:16 pm #719044
dawsonctParticipantSame Zen. Old farts unite for civility!
March 3, 2011 at 11:59 pm #719045
RarelyEverParticipantdawsonct –
More odd than “Gruess Gott” being a greeting used widely in a very secular society is that, in essence, you’re telling your fellow Bavarian to “say hi to God” – presumably when you next run into Him.
I never understood that one, but being Swabian the proper reaction to ANYTHING Bavarian is shrugging your shoulders and carrying on. :)
March 4, 2011 at 12:11 am #719046
maplesyrupParticipantThis thread reminded me that thank you in Portuguese is “obrigado,” which is a bastardization of the Japanese “arigato” and brought over in the 1600’s.
If you believe the interwebs, the origin of “arigato” is two Chinese characters that when combined mean something along the lines of “I am humbled by your presence; I don’t even belong here.”
[/Cliff Clavin]
I suppose arigato is sufficient supplication for our resident old farts.
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