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How to Say ‘Are they well?’ in Japanese

お元気ですか。

o genki desu ka

[oh gen-kee dehss kah]

🇯🇵 In Japan: Asking [お元気ですか。] about family members is a normal, caring opener with in-laws or older relatives. It's polite and safe when you want to show interest without being too direct.

Phrase Breakdown

o

[oh]

honorific prefix

Makes the expression more polite and respectful.

Example

お元気ですか。

How are you?

元気

genki

[gen-kee]

well / healthy

Means being healthy, well, or in good spirits.

Example

元気にしています。

I’m doing well.

ですか

desu ka

is/are...?; question ending

Polite question ending used to ask for confirmation or information.

Example

大丈夫ですか。

Are you okay?

Words in this phrase

です

desu

[dehss]

is / polite ending

Polite copula used in standard questions.

Example

お元気ですか。

How are you?

ka

[kah]

question marker

Marks the sentence as a question.

Example

最近お忙しいですか。

Have you been busy lately?

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