An oxygen-enabled germanium anode for lithium-ion batteries has been obtained for the first time through the local electron-stimulated reaction of oxygen molecules with gaseous germanium. Benefiting from the incorporation of oxygen atoms, this material can effectively suppress the agglomeration of germanium particles, tolerate the substantial volume change, and reduce the strain/stress generated during lithiation/delithiation. As demonstrated, the oxygen-enabled germanium anode shows significantly enhanced electrochemical performance compared to the untreated germanium anode. The oxygen-enabled electrode exhibits a high reversible lithium-storage capacity (≈1200mAhg^-1), extremely robust cycle life, and superior rate capability. The proposed concept presented in this work is feasible and valuable for other groupIV materials (Si, Sn), potentially leading to high-performance electrochemical energy-storage and conversion devices.