来 — Come, Next, Future

Meaning

来 means "to come" — but the simple definition undersells it. This kanji turns up in time expressions (来年らいねん, 来週らいしゅう), abstract concepts (将来しょうらい, 未来みらい), and even medical vocabulary (外来がいらい = outpatient). The motion it implies isn't always physical. 来 also marks the next period of time and something that has persisted since a past point.

Originally a pictograph — scholars believe it depicted a wheat or barley plant, stalks heavy with grain. That agricultural image was later borrowed to mean "to come," possibly because harvest arrives in its season. Today's form still carries 木 (tree) at its base, with strokes above suggesting branches or grain heads.

Japanese children encounter 来 in Grade 2 of elementary school — it's that unavoidable. Written with 7 strokes and classified under the radical 木. For Vietnamese learners, the Hán-Việt reading is LAI, heard in tương lai (future), which maps directly to 将来しょうらい in Japanese.

Readings

On'yomi (音読み) — Chinese-derived readings

The on'yomi is ライ (RAI), used in compound words (熟語, jukugo). It dominates time vocabulary and words about origin or arrival — and it's reliable: spot 来 in a two-kanji compound and ライ is almost always the right call.

来年らいねん (rainen) — next year
来月らいげつ (raigetsu) — next month
来週らいしゅう (raishuu) — next week
外来がいらい (gairai) — foreign-derived; outpatient
以来いらい (irai) — since, ever since
将来しょうらい (shōrai) — the future, one's prospects

Kun'yomi (訓読み) — Native Japanese readings

The main kun'yomi is く.る (ku.ru), the dictionary form of the verb "to come." Watch out: 来る is one of only two truly irregular verbs in Japanese (the other being する), so its conjugations must be memorized rather than derived from a pattern. The dot marks the boundary — く is covered by 来, while る is okurigana.

来くる (kuru) — to come (plain form)
来きます (kimasu) — to come (polite form)
来こない (konai) — not come (negative)

A second kun'yomi, きた.る (kita.ru), appears in literary or formal writing. Think of it as the written equivalent of くる.

来きたる春はる (kitaru haru) — the coming spring

There is also きた.す (kita.su), meaning "to bring about" or "to cause." It shows up in formal writing and news reports.

問題もんだいを来きたす (mondai wo kitasu) — to cause a problem

Common Words & Compounds

来 threads through a wide range of vocabulary. Here are key compounds grouped by theme:

Time expressions:

来年らいねん (rainen) — next year
来月らいげつ (raigetsu) — next month
来週らいしゅう (raishuu) — next week
来日らいにち (rainichi) — visiting Japan
将来しょうらい (shōrai) — future, prospects
未来みらい (mirai) — the future (distant or abstract)

Arrivals and visits:

来場らいじょう (raijō) — attendance at a venue
来訪らいほう (raihō) — a visit, coming to see someone
来客らいきゃく (raikyaku) — a visitor, a guest
出来できる (dekiru) — to be able to; to be completed

Origin and history:

外来がいらい (gairai) — foreign-derived; outpatient (medical)
以来いらい (irai) — since, ever since
由来ゆらい (yurai) — origin, history, derivation
本来ほんらい (honrai) — originally, by nature

Example Sentences

田中たなかさんは明日あした来くます。

Tanaka-san wa ashita kimasu.

Tanaka-san is coming tomorrow.

来年らいねん、日本にほんへ行いきたいです。

Rainen, Nihon e ikitai desu.

I want to go to Japan next year.

友達ともだちが家いえに来きました。

Tomodachi ga ie ni kimashita.

My friend came over.

来週らいしゅうの月曜日げつようびに会議かいぎがあります。

Raishuu no getsuyōbi ni kaigi ga arimasu.

There's a meeting next Monday.

バスがなかなか来こない。

Basu ga nakanaka konai.

The bus just won't come.

将来しょうらい、医者いしゃになりたいと思おもっています。

Shōrai, isha ni naritai to omotteimasu.

Someday I hope to become a doctor.

この言葉ことばは英語えいごから来きています。

Kono kotoba wa eigo kara kite imasu.

This word comes from English.

子供こどもの頃ころ以来いらい、ずっと日本語にほんごを勉強べんきょうしています。

Kodomo no koro irai, zutto Nihongo wo benkyō shite imasu.

I've been studying Japanese ever since I was a kid.

外来がいらい語ごは日本語にほんごにたくさんあります。

Gairaigo wa Nihongo ni takusan arimasu.

Japanese has a huge number of foreign-derived words.

Related Kanji

Memory Tip

Picture a person walking toward you through a forest — notice how the bottom of 来 looks like 木 (tree), and the strokes on top are two arms reaching forward. The person is coming through the trees. Vietnamese learners have an extra hook: LAI = tương lai (future), which maps directly to 将来しょうらい. That shared Sino-Vietnamese root makes the meaning stick.