How to Say ‘How are you?’ in Japanese
おげんきですか
o genki desu ka
[oh GEN-kee dess ka]
💬 Usage Tip: Adding か to the end of a polite sentence turns it into a question, so げんきです becomes げんきですか.
🇯🇵 In Japan: It's asked after not seeing someone for a while, not as a daily "how are you"; asking a coworker every morning would sound odd.
Phrase Breakdown
お
o
[oh]
honorific prefix
A polite prefix added to some words to make them more respectful.
お名前をお願いします。
May I have your name, please?
げんき
genki
[GEN-kee]
healthy; well; energetic
Describes good health or lively energy; with お it politely refers to someone else's wellbeing.
こどもは げんきです。
The child is energetic.
です
desu
[dess]
is; polite copula
A polite sentence ending used in formal conversation.
少し伺いたいです。
I would like to ask a little.
か
ka
[ka]
question particle
A particle used at the end of a sentence to form a question.
それは大丈夫ですか？
Is that okay?
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