Which one should you use?
gracias por intentar uses a verb to focus on the action of trying, whereas gracias por el intento expresses the idea as a noun phrase, meaning thanks for the attempt. Additionally, adding the object pronoun lo to the end of the verb to create gracias por intentarlo often sounds more natural because it specifies that the person tried 'it'.
How does it change in a sentence?
While gracias por intentar is grammatically possible, it is more common to use the perfect infinitive gracias por haberlo intentado when referring to a specific completed attempt that has already failed, which translates to thanks for having tried it.
How do you pronounce it?
/ɡɾaθjas poɾ intentaɾ/
What mistakes should you avoid?
English speakers often mistakenly use para instead of por after gracias. In Spanish, gracias por is the standard construction to express the reason for gratitude.
Did you know?
- The verb intentar shares an ancient root with the English word 'tend', appearing in both the Latin 'tendō' and the Proto-Indo-European '*tend-' which relates to stretching or reaching.
- In many Spanish-speaking cultures, it is considered more tactful to say gracias por el detalle meaning 'thanks for the thought' than to explicitly mention the failed attempt.
- If you want to reassure someone that their failure was not a problem after they have tried, you might pair your gratitude with the common phrase no pasa nada, meaning 'it's nothing' or 'it doesn't matter'.
Examples in context
- ¡Muchas gracias por tu esfuerzo! Valoré mucho que te tomaras el tiempo de investigar y preparar toda la presentación. Tu dedicación y compromiso se notaron y fueron clave para el éxito del proyecto.Thank you very much for your effort! I really appreciated that you took the time to research and prepare the entire presentation. Your dedication and commitment were noticeable and crucial to the success of the project.
Example conversation
Mateo tried to open a jar for Lucía but failed.
- LucíaNo pudiste abrir el frasco, Mateo.You couldn't open the jar, Mateo.
- MateoLo siento, está muy apretado.I'm sorry, it's very tight.
- LucíaNo importa, gracias por intentar.It doesn't matter, thanks for trying.
- MateoDe nada, Lucía.You're welcome, Lucía.
Sources
- IPA marked “from spelling rules” is derived from standard Spanish spelling, where Wiktionary gives none.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries gracias, intentar, por, CC BY-SA 4.0.
