iku-vs-kuru

いく and くる are two of the first verbs every Japanese learner encounters — and two of the most frequently misused. In English, “go” and “come” are straightforward. In Japanese, the choice depends entirely on the speaker’s perspective: where you are, where the action leads, and whose point of view you are taking. Get this wrong and your Japanese will feel unnatural, even when the grammar is perfect. This guide explains the speaker-perspective rule in depth and gives you the tools to choose correctly every time.

Yuka

Hey Rei, what’s the best way to remember the difference between いく and くる?

Rei

The best trick is to associate each word with a strong image or situation. By the end of this article you’ll have one for each — promise!

At a Glance: いく vs. くる

いく (行く) — Going Away from the Speaker

いく means movement away from the speaker’s current position. If you are heading somewhere that is not where the listener is, you use いく. The kanji 行 also appears in useful words like 旅行 (ryokou — travel), 銀行 (ginkou — bank), and 行動 (koudou — action / behavior).

Example 1 — going to school:

毎日学校に行く。
Mainichi gakkou ni iku.
I go to school every day.

Example 2 — invitation to go somewhere together:

一緒に映画を見に行こう。
Issho ni eiga wo mi ni ikou.
Let’s go see a movie together.

Example 3 — reporting you went somewhere:

昨日、図書館に行った。
Kinou, toshokan ni itta.
I went to the library yesterday.

Yuka

That makes sense! So いく is about… okay, I think I’m starting to get it.

Rei

You’re getting it! And the more you practice using いく in sentences, the more automatic it becomes. Language learning is all about repetition.

くる (来る) — Coming Toward the Speaker

くる means movement toward the speaker’s location. くる is one of only two truly irregular verbs in Japanese (the other is する). Its conjugation does not follow standard rules, so it must be memorized. The kanji 来 appears in 来週 (raishuu — next week), 来年 (rainen — next year), and 将来 (shourai — future).

Example 1 — someone coming to where you are:

友達が家に来る。
Tomodachi ga ie ni kuru.
My friend is coming to my house.

Example 2 — asking someone to come:

こっちに来てください。
Kocchi ni kite kudasai.
Please come over here.

Example 3 — arriving at the speaker’s location:

先生が来た。
Sensei ga kita.
The teacher came (arrived here).

Yuka

Alright. And now explain くる? I want to make sure I have both down.

Rei

Sure! くる is actually the easier one to remember once you have a clear mental image. Let’s look at the examples.

The Perspective Rule — This is the Key

The most important concept for いく vs. くる is speaker perspective. Japanese anchors the direction of movement to where the speaker currently is (or where they are mentally placing themselves).

Notice: in English, you can say “I’ll come to the party” from your own perspective. In Japanese, since you are the one leaving your location, you say 行く (iku), not くる. This is the classic mistake English speakers make.

Verb Conjugation Reference

Note: いく is technically a godan verb but has an irregular て-form: いって (not いいて). This is because き → った in て-form for く-ending verbs.

〜ていく vs. 〜てくる — Directional Auxiliary Forms

いく and くる also appear as auxiliary verbs attached to the て-form of other verbs. This is an intermediate pattern but extremely common in natural speech:

〜ていく = do something and move away / continue over time (away from now)
〜てくる = do something and come back / start happening (approaching now)

〜ていく example:
暖かくなっていく。 (Atatakaku natte iku.) — It is getting warmer (moving forward/away from now).

〜てくる example:
雨が降ってきた。 (Ame ga futte kita.) — It has started raining (came upon us).

Decision Flowchart: いく or くる?

Is the movement toward YOUR current location
(or the listener's location)?
              |
              v
           YES or NO
           |        |
          YES       NO
           |        |
           v        v
         くる      いく
        (kuru)    (iku)
        来る       行く

Key question: "Is the destination where I AM (or where YOU are)?"
- Destination = where I am now → くる
- Destination = somewhere else → いく

Quick Quiz — Test Yourself!

Yuka

Okay Rei, quiz time! I want to test how well I’ve absorbed all this.

Rei

Challenge accepted on your behalf! Let’s see how much of いく and くる has sunk in.

Choose いく or くる (in the appropriate form) for each sentence.

Q1. I go to the supermarket every Sunday.
毎週日曜日にスーパーに＿＿＿。
Maishuu nichiyoubi ni suupaa ni ___.

Answer: いく (iku) — 行く
Reason: You are going away from your current location to the supermarket.

Q2. My parents are coming to visit me this weekend.
今週末、両親が＿＿＿。
Konshuumatsu, ryoushin ga ___.

Answer: くる (kuru) — 来る
Reason: Your parents are moving toward where you are (your place), so くる is correct.

Q3. You (speaker) are at a café. Your friend asks from across town: “Are you coming to my place later?” You reply: “Yes, I’ll come!”
「うん、＿＿＿よ！」
“Un, ___ yo!”

Answer: 行く (iku) — not くる
Reason: Although in English you say “I’ll come,” in Japanese you are leaving your current location to go toward your friend’s place, so いく is correct. This is the classic perspective trap.

Q4. A teacher calls out to a student: “Come here!”
「こっちに＿＿＿！」
“Kocchi ni ___!”

Answer: きて (kite) — 来て
Reason: The teacher is summoning the student to come to where the teacher is, so くる in て-form (kite) is correct.

Q5. It has started snowing. (Snow came upon us.)
雪が降って＿＿＿。
Yuki ga futte ___.

Answer: きた (kita) — 来た (〜てきた form)
Reason: 〜てくる expresses something that has started happening and is now upon the speaker. 降ってきた = it started snowing (and is now here).

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