てくれてありがとう【～てくれてありがとう】

The expression ～てくれてありがとう is used to thank someone for doing something for you. It combines the て-form of a verb with くれる (which indicates someone did something as a favor for the speaker) and ありがとう (thank you). It translates naturally as "thank you for ~ing."

Politeness levels

The expression can be made more polite by adjusting both くれる and ありがとう:

• Casual: ～てくれてありがとう

  おしえて教えてくれてありがとう。

  Thanks for telling me.

• Polite: ～てくれてありがとうございます

  おしえて教えてくれてありがとうございます。

  Thank you for telling me.

• Very polite/formal: ～てくださってありがとうございます (using the honorific くださる instead of くれる)

  おしえてくださって教えてくださってありがとうございます。

  Thank you very much for telling me.

Past tense

To thank someone for something they did in the past, you can also use ～てくれてありがとうございました with the past tense of ありがとうございます. This is common when expressing gratitude at the end of an event or interaction.

くれて vs. もらって

You may also encounter ～てもらってありがとう, which uses もらう (to receive a favor) instead of くれる. Both express gratitude, but ～てくれてありがとう is far more natural and common. ～てくれて focuses on the other person's kindness in doing the action, making it a more direct and warm expression of thanks.