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すみません does three jobs
すみません means sorry, excuse me, and thank you, and the third is the one that surprises people. Handed something, or helped by a stranger, a Japanese speaker will often say すみません rather than ありがとう — acknowledging the trouble the other person went to rather than the benefit received. Both are correct; the apology reads as warmer in many situations. It is also how you get a server's attention, called across a restaurant, with no apology intended at all.