存じる

存じる（ぞんじる） is an Ichidan verb that evolved from the older form 存ずる（ぞんずる）. In modern business Japanese, it is a staple of professional communication.

1. Expressing Knowledge
When you want to say you know a fact, a schedule, or a thing, you use the て-form of 存じる combined with the humble auxiliary おる, resulting in 存じております. Note that 存じる is Courteous language（丁重語（ていちょうご）） used for inanimate things or facts. When referring to people worthy of respect (such as clients or superiors), you use 存じ上げる（ぞんじあげる）, which is Humble language（謙譲語（けんじょうご）） and elevates the person you are talking about. However, for in-group members (like your own subordinates), you should use 存じる. Generally, do not use 存じ上げる for inanimate objects, places, or abstract facts. However, some native speakers or strict business sources may use 存じ上げる for things directly belonging to a respected person (like their company's reputation). For example, saying 「そのプロジェクトについては存じ上げております」 is grammatically incorrect for a general object. If you do not know something, 存じません is the strictly grammatically correct negative form (since the negative of knowing is 知らない, not 知っていない). However, because simply saying 存じません or 存じ上げません can sound cold or blunt in customer-facing situations, 存じておりません and 存じ上げておりません are widely accepted and preferred in modern business Japanese as they sound softer and less direct. Furthermore, to avoid sounding blunt, it is highly recommended to precede these negative forms with cushion words (クッション言葉) such as 「申し訳ございませんが」 (I am sorry, but...), 「あいにくですが」 (Unfortunately...), or 「不勉強で恐縮ですが」 (I apologize for my lack of knowledge, but...). For the past tense ('I didn't know'), 存じておりませんでした and 存じ上げておりませんでした are the standard, highly polite forms widely used in business contexts.

2. Expressing Thoughts
When expressing an opinion or feeling, 〜と存じます replaces 〜と思います. This is frequently used in emails to express gratitude（ありがたく存じます）or to soften a request by framing it as a humble belief using 〜たく存じます. Another highly frequent and essential set phrase in business emails is 幸いに存じます (e.g., 「〜していただけますと幸いに存じます」 - I would be grateful if you could...).

3. Distinction from Honorifics
It is critical not to confuse this with ご存じ（ごぞんじ）. 存じる and 存じ上げる are Humble (about yourself), while ご存じ is Honorific (about the other person). You must never use 存じる or 存じ上げる for the listener's actions. For example, asking ❌「社長は存じておりますか？」 or ❌「社長は田中さんを存じ上げていますか？」 is incorrect. Because ご存じ acts as a noun with an honorific prefix, it cannot be conjugated like a verb. It must be paired with a copula, such as ご存じです, ご存じですか, or the even more polite ご存じでいらっしゃいますか. Additionally, regarding orthography, you will frequently see it written as ご存知. However, ご存知 is ateji (phonetic equivalent) and technically incorrect. While widely accepted in general business emails, strict government documents and professional contexts prefer ご存じ or 御存じ.