Refers to divine or spiritual favor, often from God or Buddha. Can be used in expressions of gratitude for a positive outcome attributed to a higher power.
Thanks to God's grace, I was able to return safely.
Through the Buddha's benevolence, my heart became at peace.
thanks to; owing to; because of
Expresses that a positive result is due to someone's help or a favorable circumstance. Often used in the pattern おかげで. Sense 3 (effects/influence) is closely related and merged here as it overlaps with the idea of a beneficial result.
I was saved thanks to you.
Thanks to practicing every day, I got better.
I passed the exam thanks to my teacher.
恩恵 is a more formal, often written word for a benefit or blessing, whereas おかげ is the everyday word used in casual speech.
賜物 is a literary word for the fruit or result of effort or divine favor, while おかげ is used more broadly and casually for any helpful cause.
おかげ frames a cause as something to be thankful for, while ため is neutral and can introduce either a good or bad result.
おかげ credits a good result to someone or something (usually with で), while ために is neutral and works for both good and bad causes.
assistance; help; kindness · grace; blessing; benevolence
Kana spelling is standard; the word is usually written in kana.
Kanji spelling seen in formal or literary contexts.
Rare kanji variant.
Search-only form; not used in modern writing.
Search-only form; not used in modern writing.
Derived from お (honorific prefix) + 陰 (shade, invisible influence). Originally referred to divine protection or hidden assistance.