> > > > Is this like in Spanish, in which the phrase meaning "You're welcome" can be literally translated "Of nothing"?
> > >
> > > Yes, in Italian the usual reply to "Thank you" can be translated as "Nothing", but I usual hear "Nothing" as a reply to "Thank you" from a lot of English-speaking coworkers ("You're welcome" is less used).
> > >
> > > AP.
> >
> > [...]
> > Sometimes I also say "No problem." Or if I feel like the person is thanking me for something I don't really deserve to be thanked for, I'll say, "No, thank YOU."
> >
> > Gri"my hands need a good wa"sh(ny)
>
> "No problem" is a standard I use, and the Spanish version "De Nada" is one of the few things I learned in High School Spanish I still use. And some times I'll say "Think nothing of it."

Heh. In French, the formal reply to "thank you" is "De rien", which also literally translates to "of nothing". Interesting how all these Romance languages (Italian, Spanish, French) use this curious phrase as extreme shorthand for "It was my pleasure to do it for you -- think nothing of it."

I guess the English version of "You're welcome" is a more incidental reply. It translates to something like "You have been well met."

Wolf "ab initio de novo" spirit