ẹ ṣe pupọ
thank you so much in Yoruba is ẹ ṣe pupọ.
This phrase is used to express strong gratitude or appreciation toward someone.
What does it mean word for word?
The phrase is composed of ẹ (you, plural or polite), ṣe (do) and pupọ (much/many), literally meaning "you (plural/polite) do much".
Which one should you use?
ẹ ṣe pupọ is a more emphatic way to express gratitude than the standard ẹ ṣeun (thank you).
Is there a formal and an informal way to say it?
The use of ẹ makes ẹ ṣe pupọ a polite or formal way to address one person or a group of people. To express the same sentiment to a single person of equal or lower status, you should use the informal form o ṣe pupọ.
How does it change in a sentence?
To say 'thank you so much' to a single person of equal or lower status, replace the polite ẹ with the singular o to get o ṣe pupọ.
Did you know?
- Yoruba is a tonal language, meaning the pitch used to say ṣe or pupọ can change the meaning of the words entirely if not pronounced correctly.
- In Yoruba culture, gratitude is often accompanied by a physical gesture of respect, such as a slight bow or a subtle dip of the knees when saying ẹ ṣe pupọ to an elder.
- The word pupọ relies on a linguistic phenomenon called reduplication, where a sound is repeated to intensify the meaning of 'plenty' or 'much'.
Examples in context
- Ẹ ṣe pupọ fún ìrànlọ́wọ́ yín.Thank you so much for your help.
- Ẹ ṣe pupọ, mo nífẹ̀ẹ́ yín.Thank you so much, I love you.
- Ẹ ṣe pupọ fún ẹbun náà.Thank you so much for the gift.
Example conversation
Olumide has brought a gift to Yejide's house.
- YejideOlumide, ẹ ṣe pupọ fún ẹbun yìí!Olumide, thank you so much for this gift!
- OlumideKò sí nǹkan, Yejide.It is nothing, Yejide.
- YejideÓ dùn mọ́ mi gan-an.It makes me very happy.
- OlumideInú mi dùn pé ẹ fẹ́ràn rẹ̀.I am glad that you like it.
Sources
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries pupọ, CC BY-SA 4.0.
