おかげさまで

• Reading: おかげさまで
• Romaji: okage sama de
• Pronunciation: /o.ka.ɡe sa.ma de/

Meaning

Thanks to you; things are going well — a humble expression of gratitude acknowledging others' support.

おかげさまで is a quintessentially Japanese response to inquiries about your well-being or success. Rather than taking personal credit, you attribute good fortune to the support of others. Even when the listener didn't directly help, the phrase expresses general gratitude toward the social fabric. It reflects 謙遜 (humility) and 感謝 (gratitude) simultaneously.

Examples

1. おかげさまで元気にしてます。 Thanks to you, I'm doing well.
2. おかげさまで無事に合格できました。 Thanks to everyone's support, I managed to pass.
3. おかげさまで店も順調にやっております。 Thanks to you all, the shop is doing well.

Usage Guide

Context: greetings, business, reporting good news, polite conversation

Tone: humble, grateful, warm

Do Say

• おかげさまで、プロジェクトうまくいきました (Thanks to everyone's support, the project went well)
• 体調はおかげさまでだいぶ良くなりました (My health has improved a lot, thanks to your concern)

Don't Say

• 悪いニュースの前に「おかげさまで」は矛盾する (Using おかげさまで before delivering bad news is contradictory)

Common Mistakes

• Taking おかげさまで as literally meaning the other person helped — it is often a general expression of humble gratitude
• Not using it when reporting good outcomes — in Japanese culture, attributing success solely to yourself sounds arrogant

Origin & History

From お陰 (shadow/protection, extended to divine/others' blessing) + 様 (polite suffix) + で (by means of). Originally meant 'under the protective shadow of the gods.' Evolved into a standard expression of humble gratitude.

Cultural Context

Era: Classical origins, standard modern polite expression

Generation: All ages

Social background: Universal

Regional notes: Used across all of Japan. One of the most common polite phrases in Japanese, heard daily in both formal and casual settings.