I sometimes have heard somebody replying with Why, thank you. instead of Thank you.
What is the meaning of the first phrase? What is the difference between the two phrases?
Learn English – the purpose of using the word “why” in “why, thank you”
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Related Solutions
I see a small difference between I am fine with it and it is fine for me, which is the same difference between I am unclear (used to express doubt or confusion) and it is unclear to me: in one phrase the grammar subject is I, in the other is it. For example, the focus could be placed on I to mean it is unclear to me, but it can be clear to others, or it is fine with me, and it will be fine with the others too; vice versa, the focus could be put on it to mean it is fine with me, but I don't know what others would think.
Most probably, both the sentences (the one starting with I, and the one starting with it) are understood to mean the same thing from most the people.
Looking for the frequency those, and similar phrases, are used, I get the following data (first chart; second chart):
This comes from computer jargon, and the jargon file lists it.
Automatically, but in a way that, for some reason (typically because it is too complicated, or too ugly, or perhaps even too trivial), the speaker doesn't feel like explaining to you. See magic. “The C-INTERCAL compiler generates C, then automagically invokes cc(1) to produce an executable.”
This term is quite old, going back at least to the mid-70s in jargon and probably much earlier. The word ‘automagic’ occurred in advertising (for a shirt-ironing gadget) as far back as the late 1940s.
Automagically implies certain 'magic' going on behind the scenes.
In Atwood's example it might be a bit too much or just appropriate. It depends on when it was written: today automatic updating is common, but it did not use to be. In the days when it was not common the term "automagically" fits very nicely.
It also fits well to describe the change, if the process required user action before, you can say that now it happens automagically.
Best Answer
It is definitely expressing mild surprise. Imagine you're giving a dinner party. You turn to the person sitting at the table next to you and ask them to pass the salt. They do. You say "Thank you." You wouldn't say "Why, thank you.", because there's no surprise, you were fully expecting them to pass it to you. But if someone says "I must compliment you, this stew is delicious!", you might well say "Why, thank you!", because you weren't expecting the compliment, it was a bit of a surprise. You could still say just "Thank you." in this case, but you wouldn't really ever say "Why, thank you." in the first case.