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"You're welcome," long a popular part of daily speech and a polite acknowledgement to "thank you," has died of natural causes after a long period of abandonment by the culture. It is survived by its distant relatives, "no problem," "not a problem," "uh-huh" and "whatever."
While "you're welcome's" birth date is unknown, the phrase first appeared in the 1907 edition of the Oxford English Dictionary. During most of the 20th century, the phrase issued from the lips of the most genteel people in the world.
But in recent years it has been in declining health, abandoned by the keepers of the culture. Even noted linguist Deborah Tannen gave up on the phrase.
"You're supposed to say something that minimizes the pleasure when you do something for someone," said Tannen, a linguistics professor at Georgetown University in Washington.
"No problem" is a clearer expression of minimized pleasure, she said.
"No problem" is a clearer expression of minimized pleasure, she said.
When contacted, "no problem," a night manager at Applebee's in Plano, Texas, expressed little regret over "you're welcome's" passing.
"If I don't seem to care, well my bad," he said. "Just saying."
