来る
彼は毎朝8時に来ます。
He comes at 8 AM every morning.
To move toward a place or person; to arrive; to approach.
友達が私の家に来た。
My friend came to my house.
列車が駅に来た。
The train arrived at the station.
来る is an intransitive verb and often used with particles like に (direction) or から (origin). It can also imply future arrival in some contexts (e.g., 来週来る 'to come next week').
To happen; to occur; to take place.
その事件は来月に来る。
That incident will happen next month.
Used for events or situations that will occur in the future.
(In compound verbs) To do something to oneself or for oneself.
自分で来なさい。
Come by yourself.
Often used in imperative forms or with causative verbs.
Related Phrases
Pro Tip
Particle Usage with 来る
来る is often paired with に to indicate direction (e.g., 学校に来る 'to come to school') or から to indicate origin (e.g., 東京から来る 'to come from Tokyo').
Gold Rule
来る vs. 行く
Use 来る when the movement is toward the speaker or a point of reference. Use 行く when the movement is away from the speaker or reference point.
Word Origin
From Old Japanese *kuru*, from Proto-Japonic *kərə. Related to the verb 来る (kuru) in modern Japanese, which is one of the two main verbs for 'to come' (the other being 行く (iku) for 'to go'). The kanji 来 is a phonetic loan character.
Usage Notes
来る is a basic verb but has nuanced uses depending on context. It can indicate movement toward the speaker (e.g., 彼が来た 'He came [to me]') or simply arrival (e.g., 電車が来た 'The train arrived'). In formal contexts, 来ます (kuru → kimasu) is used.