いただきます

• 読み: いただきます
• ローマ字: itadakimasu
• 発音: /i.ta.da.ki.ma.sɯ/

意味

Thanks for the food — said before eating as an expression of gratitude.

いただきます is one of the most culturally significant Japanese phrases, said with palms pressed together before eating. It expresses gratitude to the cook, the ingredients, and the effort that brought the meal to the table. Skipping it is considered rude. It has also been adopted humorously in manga and anime for non-food contexts to mean 'I'll gladly take/receive this.'

例文

1. いただきます！美味しそう。
2. みんな揃ったし、いただきます！
3. お弁当開けていただきます。

使い方ガイド

場面: meals, eating, receiving food

トーン: grateful, ritualistic

正しい言い方

• いただきます！手料理嬉しい！ (Itadakimasu! I'm so happy for the home cooking!)
• いただきます、いい匂いですね (Itadakimasu, it smells wonderful)

避ける言い方

• 食べ物以外のプレゼントをもらう時に「いただきます」は普通使わない (Don't use いただきます when receiving non-food gifts — use ありがとうございます)

よくある間違い

• Forgetting to say いただきます before eating — it is considered rude to start eating without it
• Thinking it means 'bon appetit' — it is closer to 'I humbly receive' and is about gratitude, not wishing others a good meal

起源と歴史

Humble form of いただく (itadaku, to humbly receive), from 頂く (to receive from someone above). Originally expressed gratitude for receiving food from a higher-status person, now a universal pre-meal ritual.

文化的背景

時代: Traditional, deeply rooted custom

世代: All ages

社会的背景: Universal

地域メモ: Used across all of Japan without exception. One of the most iconic Japanese cultural phrases, taught from earliest childhood.