Japanese dictionary
How to say "How are you?" in Japanese
お元気ですかおげんきですか · o-genki desu ka
"How are you?" in Japanese is お元気ですか (o-genki desu ka). It is used mainly when you haven't seen someone for a while, not as a daily greeting.
▶ plays native audio. Audio on this site plays when you are logged in to your free japanese.ccn.jp account (the same account as Japanese Talk by CCN).
Ways to say "How are you?" in Japanese
| Japanese | When to use it |
|---|---|
| お元気ですかおげんきですか · o-genki desu ka | How are you? (when you haven't met in a while) |
| 元気？げんき · genki? | How are you? (casual) |
| 調子はどうですかちょうしはどうですか · chōshi wa dō desu ka | How's it going? |
How to use it
For coworkers you see every day, a simple おはようございます or お疲れさまです is enough.
A polite answer is おかげさまで元気です (okagesama de genki desu).
Example sentences
- お久しぶりです。お元気ですか。O-hisashiburi desu. O-genki desu ka.Long time no see. How are you?
- おかげさまで元気です。Okagesama de genki desu.I'm doing well, thank you.
- 元気？最近どう？Genki? Saikin dō?How are you? How's it been?
- 仕事の調子はどうですか。Shigoto no chōshi wa dō desu ka.How's work going?
- ご家族の皆さんはお元気ですか。Go-kazoku no minasan wa o-genki desu ka.How is your family?
- まあまあです。Māmā desu.I'm doing OK.
Kanji in this word
Questions
Is お元気ですか a daily greeting?
No. お元気ですか is for people you haven't seen in a while. With coworkers you see daily, use おはようございます or お疲れさまです.
What does おかげさまで mean?
おかげさまで (okagesama de) means "thanks to you" and is a polite way to say things are going well.
Using Japanese at work?
See Executive JapaneseExecutive Japanese by CCN is one-on-one online Japanese for managers and directors doing business in Japan.