Is "Thank god", as opposed to "Thank God", acceptable?

People are quite stingy lately about anything with religious connotations, so I'm worried that the phrase "thank God" might tick some people off.

Is "thank god" acceptable? Would that offend people of monotheistic faiths? Or would "thank God" be acceptable to atheists/polytheists too?

Solution 1:

Are you worried about offending atheists/polytheists by being too monotheistic, or about offending monotheists by being blasphemous?

In any case, I think that in most contexts, anyone offended by “thank God” would still be offended by “thank god”, and vice versa. In informal contexts, I’d be surprised if either offended anyone; extremely devout monotheists might perhaps consider them blasphemous. In some official contexts (if you were acting as spokesperson for a school, say), both forms could upset people who have strong feelings about separation of church and state.

“Thank goodness!” is probably an unobjectionable alternative. In case you’re not familiar with this expression, it isn’t a neologistic PC euphemism for “thank God”, it’s a common equivalent phrase which I think most native speakers would be familiar with.

Solution 2:

"God" is a proper noun, and for that reason should be capitalized. So the phrase "Thank God" is appropriate. There are so many contextual nuances that it is truly easier to adhere to that standard, unless you are trying to make a very explicit statement.

Even with that standard, you will not please everyone, but at least you are less likely to cause confusion. For example, Christian and Islamic faiths refer to "God" as "God". So do many Jews. However some religious Jews use the following "G_d" or "G-d" instead.

If one were writing for an audience with a pantheist belief system, I think it would still be correct to refer to God with a capital G, but maybe in the plural case. "Thank the Gods". Whether a single or multiple instance, you are referring to deities.

If you are worried about offending non-religious or atheist readers, do not use the expression "Thank God" at all. There are many alternatives.