Grammar Info

N5 Lesson 4: 6/13

()

To come

Structure Legend

Structure

くる

Details

  • Part of Speech

    Verb

  • Word Type

    Independent Word

  • Register

    Standard

  • 品詞

    動詞

  • 単語の種類

    自立語

  • 使用域

    一般

About くる

() is one of only two verbs in Japanese that do not follow the standard rules of conjugation for Godan and Ichidan verbs. The other primary verb being する. () means 'to come', or 'to be coming'.
  • (まえ)パーティー()
    Will you come to the party too?
  • サヤ(いえ)()ている
    I have come to Saya's house. (I'm at Saya's house now)
() will always have the particle or attached to the location that someone 'will come', or 'has come'.
The reason that () is called a か-column irregular conjugation verb in Japanese is because the る in () does not conjugate, but is dropped. This leaves the く being the part that conjugates. Because of this, 来る has qualities of both る-Verbs (the る being dropped), and う-Verbs (the remaining く changing depending on the conjugation). Here are some examples of how () changes.
(き)た, (く)る, (こ)ない
() will often be seen as ()ている when someone has come to a place and remains there. This is due to ている meaning 'to exist in the state of an action', rather than being exactly the same as '(A)~ing' in English. Because of this, ()ている can mean either 'to be somewhere that one has come', or 'to be coming'.
  • (いま)(えき)()ている
    I have come to the station. (I am at the station now)
  • カナ(えき)()ている
    Is Kana coming to the station? (Is Kana on her way to the station now?)
Sometimes the difference between these two will not be clear unless there is further context.
Caution
()ている (for existing at a place) is only used for places that people 'temporarily' go, so will not be used when you are at your home/work.

Examples

  • トムここ()

    Tom will come here.

  • バス()

    The bus will come.

  • (かれ)バス()ます

    He will come by bus.

  • 友達(ともだち)()ます

    Will your friend come too?

  • 明日(あした)()ます

    I will come tomorrow.

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くる – Grammar Discussion

Most Recent Replies (5 in total)

  • Johnathan-Weir

    Johnathan-Weir

    About 5 years ago

    Okay, I see. We let the でしょう make it formal.

  • mrnoone

    mrnoone

    About 5 years ago

    Btw, I love your avatar

  • Johnathan-Weir

    Johnathan-Weir

    About 5 years ago

    ありがとうございます😊

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