Britons replace 'thank you' with 'cheers', 'ta'

Britons are shunning the formal 'thank you' and are more likely to use trendy phrases such as 'super' and 'awesome' to show their gratitude, a new study has found. Words such as 'Cheers', 'ta' or 'that's great' have replaced a thank you because many Britons think it's too formal.

Researchers found that four in 10 Britons prefer not to use it while 13 per cent think it is old-fashioned, the 'Daily Express' reported. Instead, words such as 'cool', 'brilliant', 'lovely', 'fab', 'super', 'you star', 'wicked', 'okay', 'nice one', 'much appreciated', 'awesome' and even 'boom' are more popular than a thank you.

"People still like to give and receive thanks, but in the modern world there are a million different ways to do this. People use different phrases depending on the situation and who they are speaking to," said Zoe Shore, for the study by First Direct bank.

"So words such as boom, cool and wicked might be deemed appropriate with your mates, but not quite so suitable for a work setting, or when talking to an elder," Shore said. Of the 2,000 Brits who took part in the study, six in 10 people believe that, as a nation, Britain is quite rude. Also, 83 per cent think more effort needs to be made to regularly show gratitude.