What does “благодарю” mean in Russian?

Благодарю is a formal “thank you,” more solemn than спасибо, so you’ll hear it in speeches, letters and prayers, and я благодарен means “I am grateful.” Inside it you can see благо, “good,” and the root дар-, “gift.” It’s tempting to read it as “I give good,” but благодарить is a bookish Church Slavonic formation on a Greek model, not an old phrase Russians once said.

Спасибо has a plainer story: it grew out of спаси Бог, “God save (you).” The family of благо is large: благополучие (well-being), благотворительность (charity). The speaker gives thanks before he eats, for food, friends, work and health, за это я благодарен, then reads, translates and has breakfast to jazz.