What connotations does "Danke Schön" carry?

Question

Guten abend!

While learning German I've heard several different forms of "thank you", notably "danke schön". German teachers have previously told me this means "thank you very much" or simply "thank you", and have instructed me to use it as I would use "danke". However, a literal translation of "schön" is "pretty", making "danke schön" "thank you dear" or "thank you pretty".

In English, this doesn't just express graditude but also affection, implying a certain level of informality or even intimacy. While this is nice if said innocently, it may come off the wrong way when said to a stranger or in a certain context (such as a man saying it to a woman). Does "danke schön" carry the same connotations?

Follow up: if not, what's the difference between "danke schön" and "vielen dank" (which, as I understand it, also means "thank you very much")?

Apologies for the silly question, I'm new to the German language and to Stack Exchange. Thanks in advance!

Answer 1

Danke schön is a contraction of Ich danke Ihnen schön which, literally translated, means "I thank you nicely". So the schön does not refer to the addressee but to the quality of the thanks.

In everyday speech Danke schön is used as an embellishment to the simple Danke because the latter may come over as somewhat curt. It does imply a somewhat higher degree of gratitude, but not as high as Vielen Dank.