Grateful vs. Thankful: Is There A Difference?

Thankful and grateful are very similar words that are often used as synonyms. But do they actually mean the same thing?

In this article, we will examine the words thankful and grateful, explain when they might be used to imply different things, and provide examples of how we typically use them in sentences. 

thankful vs. grateful

The words thankful and grateful are very close in meaning. They are often used as interchangeable synonyms to describe gratitude or appreciation for something or someone.

The word thankful sometimes implies that someone was saved from something or had someone prevent something bad from happening to them. This sense is especially common in religious contexts.

Sometimes, the word grateful is viewed as a stronger, more emotional, or more emphatic version of thankful. Some people may think that grateful places more emphasis on appreciation toward others, while thankful places the emphasis more on the relief felt by the person who was helped. 

It is important to note that even these differences are very slight and aren’t perceived as actual distinctions by everyone. In most writing and speech, thankful and grateful are treated as exact synonyms of each other and are seen as having identical meanings.

Examples of grateful and thankful in a sentence

Let’s show our appreciation toward grateful and thankful by looking at how we typically use them in sentences. 

• I’ll always be grateful for the teachers who taught me good study habits.
• The farmers were thankful for the good harvest given to them by the gods.
• The people were eternally grateful to the brave heroes who saved them from a dragon. 
• Sylvia was thankful that the roof didn’t fall down on her during the tornado. 
• Thor was thankful for his magic hammer Mjülnir, which he often used to save grateful citizens from evil supervillains.