Thanksgiving quotes for grace and toasts
Thanksgiving is one of the few days when someone at the table is expected to say a few words. These quotes are checked against the original proclamations, speeches and texts, so you can say them with confidence.
Cicero says that being grateful is the most important virtue and the source of the others, because people who remember what they owe are loyal, dutiful and kind.
Read the full explanation →Paul tells a young church facing hardship to keep giving thanks whatever happens. The point is gratitude in every situation, not pretending bad things are good.
Read the full explanation →Washington, at the request of Congress, set aside a day for Americans to thank God for the country's blessings, above all the chance to set up a new government peacefully.
Read the full explanation →A call to thank God because he is good and his faithful love never runs out. It works as a refrain, repeated at the start of several psalms.
Read the full explanation →At a holiday gathering, don't dwell on what the year has taken from you. Count what you still have, because everyone has many blessings and every life has some sorrow.
Read the full explanation →In the middle of the Civil War, Lincoln asked Americans to give thanks for good harvests and for the country's blessings, and to pray for widows, orphans and the healing of the nation.
Read the full explanation →No quotes match these filters yet. New quotes are added every week.
How to use a quote at Thanksgiving
If you are asked to say grace, a short verse such as Psalm 107:1 is enough on its own. Say it slowly, add a sentence naming one or two things your family is thankful for this year, and finish. Nobody minds a short grace; everyone notices a long one while the food gets cold.
For a toast, the history behind Thanksgiving gives you a good story. Lincoln proclaimed the national holiday in 1863, in the middle of the Civil War, and that contrast lets you say something about being grateful in a hard year without sounding preachy.
Mixed company is common at Thanksgiving. If not everyone shares a faith, choose a line from Cicero or Dickens about gratitude and blessings, which works for every guest.