How to Conjugate 来る

Which Verb Group Is It?

Kuru (来る), meaning to come, is one of only two irregular verbs in Japanese, alongside suru. Its irregularity comes from the stem vowel itself shifting between ku, ki, and ko across forms, not from anything about the kanji itself.

Kuru is irregular because the stem vowel itself changes across forms: ku in the dictionary form, ki in the polite and te/ta forms, and ko in the negative, past negative, and volitional forms, and again in derived forms such as the potential 来られる (korareru). This shift happens in the spoken language independent of writing; it is exactly as irregular spelled out in kana (くる, きます, こない) as it is written with 来. Because Japanese writes all of these with the same kanji 来, the shifting stem vowel shows up on the page as a kanji whose reading changes by form, so the kanji 来 alone does not tell you the reading; the okurigana attached after it (ます in 来ます, ない in 来ない, and so on) is what fixes it.

When to Use Each Form

Reach for kuru itself when speaking casually with friends or family, or writing the plain form in a diary or informal message. Switch to kimasu when speaking to someone above you, a stranger, or in a work email, since the polite ki- stem carries through to its negative and past forms as well. Use kite when asking someone to come somewhere, or to link the action into a longer sentence with another verb. Kita marks that someone has already arrived, so it shows up in narration and in messages telling someone the person is here. Konai and konakatta say that someone is not coming or did not come, in the same casual register as kuru. Korareru lets you ask or state whether someone is able to come, such as confirming attendance for an event. Koyou is for proposing to come, such as agreeing to come along or suggesting a time to arrive; the sense of coming back specifically needs the word mata (again) added, since koyou alone does not carry that meaning.

Example Sentences

Common Mistakes

One trap is trying to read 来 the same way every time it appears; learners who memorize kuru as the reading of 来 then freeze when they meet 来ます or 来ない because the kanji looks identical but the sound is not ku at all. Another error is building the negative from the wrong stem, producing something like kinai or kuranai instead of the correct konai. Because kuru shares irregular status with suru, some learners try to force a regular ending onto it and produce kurimasu or kuremasu instead of kimasu. Finally, the potential form is often built by applying the regular potential rule to the wrong stem, giving kureru or kirareru instead of the correct korareru.

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