I Am Humbled – Meaning & Synonyms

Your moment has come. You’ve won the award – the one you worked so hard for. You never really thought this day would come and now you’re standing on a stage about to accept your trophy.

But now what should you say to let everyone know how grateful you are?

I Am Humbled – Meaning

“I am humbled” is a phrase that people use in response to praise. It is a way of expressing that you don’t feel worthy of the level of praise that you’re receiving and were not expecting it. This is a way of avoiding seeming arrogant in the face of success.

The Cambridge Dictionary defines humble as:

• Not proud or not believing that you are important.

When you say that you’ve been “humbled” by praise, it means that you feel that the praise is befitting someone more important than yourself.

Whether or not you’re actually feeling humble at the time doesn’t really matter. You can be absolutely certain that you do deserve all of that praise and still say “I’m humbled”, just so people don’t realize how arrogant you actually are.

The phrase also indicates a level of respect for the person or institution offering you praise. As if you can’t believe someone so great would take interest in little old you.

How to Use “I Am Humbled” in a Sentence

There are a number of ways to express your humility in the face of praise. Here are a few examples of how to use “I am humbled” in a sentence:

• I am humbled and honored to hear all of your kind words today; it truly means the world to me.
• I am humbled to accept this award, knowing that I could never have made it this far without the help of so many people.
• I am humbled and grateful for your offer, but I’m afraid I can’t accept it.
• The response to the book has been marvelous! I’m humbled by it.
• I’m going to respond with “I am humbled” when I win the award, so everyone knows how down-to-earth I am.

Other Ways to Say “I Am Humbled”

Other ways to say “I am humbled” are “I’m deeply humbled”, “I am unworthy”, and “I am honored”. The last two don’t have precisely the same connotations as the original phrase but will still effectively convey a similar message.

1. I’m Deeply Humbled

If you’re looking for another way to say “I am humbled” then this is a great place to start! It’s common to add “deeply” to the phrase and say “I’m deeply humbled”. This emphasizes the degree to which you feel humbled by the praise you’re receiving, helping you to look even less arrogant.

Let’s take a look at it in some example sentences:

• I’m deeply humbled to be standing in front of some of the greatest minds in cinema today, delivering this speech.
• I want you to know that I’m deeply humbled by your praise; I’ve always looked up to you so much.

2. I Am Unworthy

Another alternative to “I am humbled” is “I am unworthy”. This is a different way of saying that you don’t feel like you deserve all of the praise or honors that you’re receiving, or that you don’t feel like you deserve to hear praise from a particular person because they’re too important.

Let’s have a look at it in some example sentences:

• I am unworthy of such an accolade, but I will accept it, nonetheless.
• I am unworthy of hearing such praise from a maestro such as yourself!

3. I Am Honored

When you use “I am honored” instead of “I am humbled”, it doesn’t place as much emphasis on how you feel undeserving of praise. Instead, it shows that you are graciously accepting praise but not taking it lightly – it means a lot to you, and you don’t just feel entitled to it.

Let’s see how it fits into some example sentences:

• I am honored to accept this award, which has previously been accepted by so many people I respect and admire.
• I can’t believe that so many people are interested in my book. Truly, I am honored.

 In What Situations Can You Use “I Am Humbled”?

Use the phrase “I am humbled” when you want to express gratitude for an accolade or experience while demonstrating that it hasn’t made you arrogant. Use it to show that the praise means a lot to you and that you don’t take it for granted.