(かたみ)(ひろ)

かたみがひろい
expression
to feel proud; to be able to hold one's head high
idiomemotion
1. to feel proud; to feel one can hold one's head high among others
To feel free of embarrassment in front of other people, usually because of an achievement — often someone else's, such as a family member's. Literally 'one's shoulders are wide.' Far less common than its opposite, 肩身(かたみ)(せま)い.
息子(むすこ)おかげ肩身(かたみ)(ひろ)い。
Thanks to my son I can hold my head high.
The local team won the championship, so the fans are walking tall.
My daughter got into the school she wanted, so now I can hold my head high even in front of the relatives.
The department had run at a loss for years and finally turned a profit, so we can hold our heads up in the company now.

Structure: 肩身(かたみ) (the shoulders; one's standing in others' eyes) + + (ひろ) (wide).

Common patterns

  • 肩身(かたみ)(ひろ)なる: to come to feel proud
  • おかげ肩身(かたみ)(ひろ)い: to be able to hold one's head high thanks to ~

Usage

The pride is social — how one appears to relatives, neighbors, or colleagues — not private satisfaction, which would be (ほこ)らしい. The negative counterpart 肩身(かたみ)(せま) (to feel small, ashamed) is much more frequent in everyday speech, and 肩身(かたみ)(ひろ)い is often used precisely as its reversal.