grazie mille
/ˈɡrat.t͡sje ˈmil.le/
In Italian, "thanks a million" is expressed as grazie mille.
The phrase is used to say thanks a great many times.
Meaning: thanks a great many times (intj)
What does it mean word for word?
The expression is composed of grazie (thanks) and mille (thousand).
Which one should you use?
While the word mille literally means "thousand", it serves as the standard idiomatic way to express the English concept of "a million" or "a great many" thanks in Italian.
How do you pronounce it?
It has 4 syllables, with the stress on the 1st syllable.
Did you know?
- The word mille is a linguistic 'doublet' of the Italian word miglio, which means 'mile'. Both words stem from the same ancient Proto-Indo-European root related to the number one thousand.
- If you try to be even more grateful by using the word for 'million' (milioni), an Italian speaker might think you are making a mathematical statement rather than an emotional one.
- In many Italian dialects, such as Sicilian, the word for 'thanks' is pronounced grazzi, which shares the same linguistic roots as the standard Italian version.
Examples in context
- Grazie mille.Thanks a million.This example shows how to use grazie mille.Tatoeba #3138248 by hitori37, translation #2250081 by CK
- Grazie mille, sei un mito!Thanks a million, you're a legend!
- Grazie mille per il tuo aiuto.Thanks a million for your help.
Example conversation
Lorenzo is thanking Martina for lending him her car.
- LorenzoGrazie mille per avermi prestato l'auto, Martina.Thanks a million for lending me the car, Martina.
- MartinaDi nulla, Lorenzo, non c'è di che.You're welcome, Lorenzo, no problem.
- LorenzoMi hai salvato la giornata!You saved my day!
- MartinaSono felice di esserti stata utile.I'm happy I could be helpful to you.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “thanks a million” translations and entries grazie mille, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries grazie, grazie mille, mille, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
