“Go” in Japanese: How to Use 行く (Iku) and 来る (Kuru)

---

The standard way to say “go” in Japanese is 行く (いく, iku). It’s the plain non-past form, so it can mean “go”, “goes” or “will go” depending on the sentence.

The verb 来る (くる, kuru) means “come”. The choice between them depends on your reference point: are you moving away from it, or towards it?

That one idea will help you choose the right verb in invitations, directions and everyday conversation. You’ll also learn the forms for “went”, “let’s go”, “come”, “bring” and “take”. For the wider system behind these forms, keep our Japanese verb conjugation guide handy.

The romanisation below uses modified Hepburn with macrons for long vowels. The particles は, へ and を are romanised by their pronunciations wa, e and o.

Editor's note: Before we get started, if you’re looking for an online Japanese course, here’s the course we recommend: Japanese Uncovered – Learn Japanese Through the Power of Story, a course with a fascinating new method by Olly Richards. You can try it for free for 7 days!

“To Go” in Japanese: 行く (iku)

行く is written いく in hiragana and pronounced iku. Its dictionary form is also the plain non-past form. Japanese doesn’t mark a separate future tense on the verb, so time words and context do the work:

毎日、学校に行く。
Mainichi, gakkō ni iku.
“I go to school every day.”

明日、学校に行く。
Ashita, gakkō ni iku.
“I’ll go to school tomorrow.”

Japanese often leaves out a subject that everyone can recover from context. That’s why the same Japanese sentence could mean “I’ll go”, “she’ll go” or “they’ll go” in the right conversation.

Don’t confuse 行く with 行う (okonau). They share the kanji 行, but they’re different verbs. 行う means “perform”, “conduct” or “carry out” and is common for planned or institutional actions:

会議を行う。
Kaigi o okonau.
“Conduct a meeting.”

You may also hear いらっしゃる (irassharu), an honorific verb that can mean “go”, “come” or “be”. Learners need it for recognition long before they need to produce it. The shop greeting いらっしゃいませ (irasshaimase) comes from this verb.

How to Conjugate 行く

行く is a godan verb. Most of its forms follow the normal godan pattern, but its て-form and plain past are important exceptions: 行って (itte) and 行った (itta), not 行いて or 行いた.

Form	Japanese	Romanisation	Typical meaning
Plain non-past	行く	iku	go / will go
Polite non-past	行きます	ikimasu	go / will go
Plain negative	行かない	ikanai	don’t go / won’t go
Polite negative	行きません	ikimasen	don’t go / won’t go
Plain past	行った	itta	went
Polite past	行きました	ikimashita	went
Plain past negative	行かなかった	ikanakatta	didn’t go
Polite past negative	行きませんでした	ikimasen deshita	didn’t go
て-form	行って	itte	go and… / used in requests and linked actions

English “going” doesn’t map neatly onto one Japanese form. 行っている (itte iru) can describe a habit or the state after someone has gone, depending on context:

毎週ジムに行っている。
Maishū jimu ni itte iru.
“I go to the gym every week.”

Our Japanese て-form guide shows how this form links actions and combines with helper verbs.

“Let’s Go” in Japanese

For a direct “Let’s go”, choose between a plain volitional and a polite volitional:

• 行こう！ (Ikō!) means “Let’s go!” in a casual setting.
• 行きましょう。 (Ikimashō.) is the polite version: “Let’s go” or “Shall we go?”
• 行きませんか。 (Ikimasen ka.) is a common polite invitation: “Would you like to go?”

The negative form in 行きませんか often softens the proposal, but politeness still depends on the situation, relationship and rest of the wording.

For “I want to go”, change 行きます to its stem 行き and add たい:

日本に行きたい！
Nihon ni ikitai!
“I want to go to Japan!”

To ask where someone is going, use one of these:

• どこに行きますか。 (Doko ni ikimasu ka.) “Where are you going?” Polite.
• どこに行く？ (Doko ni iku?) “Where are you going?” Casual.

The casual question is understood through context and intonation. You may also hear どこに行くの？ (Doko ni iku no?) when the speaker is asking with added interest or seeking an explanation.

レッツゴー！ (Rettsu gō!) is the borrowed English “Let’s go!” It works as a playful cheer or catchphrase, but it isn’t a replacement for the ordinary Japanese forms above.

“Go Away!” in Japanese

Japanese has several commands that subtitles may translate as “Go away”. Their force ranges from direct to openly hostile, so learn them for recognition before you try to use them.

• あちらへ行ってください。 (Achira e itte kudasai.) literally means “Please go over there.” It’s grammatically polite, though still a direct instruction.
• 行きなさい。 (Ikinasai.) is an authoritative “Go”. A parent or teacher might use this pattern with a child.
• 行け！ (Ike!) is a blunt imperative: “Go!”
• あっちへ行け！ (Acchi e ike!) is a rough “Go over there!” or “Get away!”
• 消えろ！ (Kiero!) and 失せろ！ (Usero!) are hostile ways to say “Get lost!” Both come from verbs meaning “disappear” or “go away”.

行ってください (itte kudasai) is a literal “please go” when the destination is understood. Polite grammar doesn’t automatically make it a tactful way to ask a person to leave.

If you’re hosting a gathering and want to bring it to a close, そろそろお開きにしましょう (Sorosoro ohiraki ni shimashō), “Let’s call it a night”, addresses the situation instead of ordering one person away.

“Go to…” in Japanese

Put a destination before に or へ and then add 行く:

• 公園に行く。 (Kōen ni iku.) “Go to the park.”
• 公園へ行く。 (Kōen e iku.) “Head towards the park.”

Both can mark a destination here. に focuses more readily on the destination, while へ highlights direction. They overlap in many movement sentences but aren’t interchangeable in every construction. You can compare their other jobs in our guide to Japanese particles.

To say that you’re going somewhere in order to do something, put the purpose before に行く:

• 食べに行く。 (Tabe ni iku.) “Go to eat.”
• 買いに行く。 (Kai ni iku.) “Go to buy it.”

English phrases with “go” don’t always use 行く in Japanese. “Go to bed” normally uses 寝る (neru), “sleep”:

今から寝る。おやすみ！
Ima kara neru. Oyasumi!
“I’m going to bed now. Goodnight!”

寝なさいよ。
Ne nasai yo.
“Go to sleep.”

For “go home”, use 帰る (kaeru), “return home”:

家に帰ります。
Ie ni kaerimasu.
“I’m going home.”

The plain volitional 帰ろう (kaerō) means “Let’s go home”, and 帰りましょう (kaerimashō) is its polite counterpart.

“Go to Hell” in Japanese: A Recognition-Only Note

地獄へ落ちろ！ (Jigoku e ochiro!) literally means “Fall into hell!” It will be understood, but sounds dramatic rather than like an everyday set phrase. 地獄 (jigoku) has a long-established Buddhist meaning and isn’t an exclusively Christian concept.

死ね！ (Shine!) literally means “Die!” and くたばれ！ (Kutabare!) is closer to “Drop dead!” Both are extremely hostile. ばかやろう！ (Bakayarō!) is a rough “Idiot!” or “Jerk!”, not a literal translation of “go to hell”.

These are useful to recognise in fiction, games or an argument. They aren’t casual slang to test on someone. For a real boundary, やめてください (Yamete kudasai), “Please stop”, or 放っておいてください (Hotte oite kudasai), “Please leave me alone”, says what you need without invoking violence. Our Japanese slang guide has more register notes for informal language.

“To Come” in Japanese: 来る (kuru)

来る is written くる in hiragana and pronounced kuru. It describes movement towards the speaker’s location or another place that the conversation treats as its reference point.

友だちがうちに来る。
Tomodachi ga uchi ni kuru.
“A friend is coming to my place.”

ここに来てください。
Koko ni kite kudasai.
“Please come here.”

来る and する (suru), “do”, are the two main irregular verbs taught at beginner level. Compounds and a handful of special forms add wrinkles later, so it’s safer to learn the forms of 来る as a set.

How to Conjugate 来る

来る changes between the readings kuru, ko- and ki-. These aren’t regular vowel-column changes that you can derive by dropping る. Learn each form directly:

Form	Japanese	Romanisation	Typical meaning
Plain non-past	来る	kuru	come / will come
Polite non-past	来ます	kimasu	come / will come
Plain negative	来ない	konai	don’t come / won’t come
Polite negative	来ません	kimasen	don’t come / won’t come
Plain past	来た	kita	came
Polite past	来ました	kimashita	came
Plain past negative	来なかった	konakatta	didn’t come
Polite past negative	来ませんでした	kimasen deshita	didn’t come
て-form	来て	kite	come and… / used in requests and linked actions

来ている (kite iru) also depends on context. With もう (mō), “already”, it can describe the state after someone has arrived:

先生はもう来ています。
Sensei wa mō kite imasu.
“The teacher is already here.”

Iku vs Kuru in Japanese: Pick the Reference Point

The most reliable test is to choose the reference point before you choose the verb:

• Use 行く for movement away from the relevant reference point.
• Use 来る for movement towards it.

The reference point is usually the speaker’s location or a place treated as “here” in the conversation. Japanese doesn’t automatically shift to the listener’s viewpoint in the way English often does.

Situation	Japanese	Why
You’re at home and will go to the station.	駅に行く。 Eki ni iku.	You move away from your current location.
A friend at the station asks if you’re coming. You reply from home.	うん、今行く。 Un, ima iku. “Yes, I’m coming now.”	English adopts the friend’s viewpoint; Japanese keeps yours and uses 行く.
You’re at home and a friend will come there.	友だちがうちに来る。 Tomodachi ga uchi ni kuru.	The movement is towards your location.
You’re at the party and ask if a friend will come there.	パーティーに来る？ Pātī ni kuru?	The party is the established “here”.

You’ll also see both iku and yuku for 行く. Both readings have a long history. Iku is the ordinary conversational reading today, while yuku has a literary or poetic feel and survives in fixed expressions.

東京行き電車
Tōkyō-yuki densha
“A train bound for Tokyo”

The 行き (-yuki) destination label in examples like this is a fixed compound reading. It doesn’t mean you should replace everyday iku with yuku.

How to Use 〜ていく and 〜てくる

Attach いく or くる to a verb’s て-form and you can show movement relative to the reference point. These patterns also describe how a process develops through time. They don’t simply match the English future expression “be going to”.

Physical movement away or towards the reference point

• 子どもが走っていった。 (Kodomo ga hashitte itta.) “The child ran off.” The running moves away.
• パンを買ってくる。 (Pan o katte kuru.) “I’ll go and buy bread, then come back.” The action ends with movement back towards the reference point.

A process moving away from now or developing up to now

• これから寒くなっていく。 (Kore kara samuku natte iku.) “It will get colder from now on.” The change continues forwards from the present.
• 日本語が少しずつ分かってきた。 (Nihongo ga sukoshi zutsu wakatte kita.) “I’ve gradually come to understand Japanese.” The change has developed up to now.
• 雨が降ってきた。 (Ame ga futte kita.) “It has started to rain.” The onset reaches the present situation; it doesn’t have to be sudden.

Keep the physical direction in mind first. The time-based uses grow from that same image, so you don’t need a separate English translation for every sentence.

“To Bring” and “To Take”: 持ってくる vs 持っていく

持つ (motsu) means “hold” or “carry”. Add the same direction pattern and you get a useful bring/take contrast:

• 持ってくる (motte kuru) means bring or carry something towards the speaker or established reference location.
• 持っていく (motte iku) means take or carry something away from the current reference location.

If you’re at home and ask for a book to be brought to you:

その本をここに持ってきてください。
Sono hon o koko ni motte kite kudasai.
“Please bring that book here.”

If you’re at home and plan to carry a book to your friend’s house:

友だちの家に本を持っていく。
Tomodachi no ie ni hon o motte iku.
“I’ll take a book to my friend’s house.”

In these helper-like uses, いく and くる are often written in hiragana. You’ll also see 持って行く and 持って来る with kanji.

Japanese Slang for “Go”

ゴー！ (Gō!) is the borrowed English cheer “Go!”, and レッツゴー！ (Rettsu gō!) is common as an energetic slogan or catchphrase. For an actual Japanese command, 行け！ (Ike!) is much stronger.

The number five, 五, has the reading go, so you may occasionally see 55 or 555 used as a “go, go, go” number pun in a particular online community. It isn’t a standard spelling of the command, and readers outside that context may not understand it. Use ゴー！ for the borrowed cheer instead.

Other Japanese Motion Verbs to Know

行く and 来る are only the start. These verbs let you say how something moves and where the journey ends:

Japanese	Romanisation	Core meaning
帰る	kaeru	return / go home
出かける	dekakeru	go out
着く	tsuku	arrive
入る	hairu	enter
出る	deru	leave / exit
戻る	modoru	return / go back
通る	tōru	pass through
通う	kayō	commute / attend regularly
渡る	wataru	cross
登る	noboru	climb
降りる	oriru	descend / get off a vehicle
歩く	aruku	walk
走る	hashiru	run
飛ぶ	tobu	fly
動く	ugoku	move
転がる	korogaru	roll (intransitive: something rolls)
転がす	korogasu	roll (transitive: someone rolls something)

Learn each verb in a short sentence instead of memorising the English gloss alone. 帰る becomes way easier to retrieve when you’ve already practised もう帰る (Mō kaeru), “I’m going home now”. You can find more high-frequency verbs in our core Japanese words guide.

Time to Go On to the Next Lesson

You’ll remember 行く and 来る when you make the reference point visible. Try this seven-step practice loop:

1. Pick a real destination from your week.
2. Decide what counts as “here” in the conversation.
3. Choose movement away from that point with 行く, or towards it with 来る.
4. Add the destination with に or へ.
5. Choose a plain or polite ending for the situation.
6. Say the sentence once, then change the person, time or destination.
7. Use one contrast pair in a conversation and notice which verb your partner uses back.

Start with these three prompts:

• You’re at home and tell a friend at the station, “I’m coming now”: 今、そっちに行く。 (Ima, sotchi ni iku.)
• “Please bring it here”: ここに持ってきてください。 (Koko ni motte kite kudasai.)
• “It will get colder from now on”: これから寒くなっていく。 (Kore kara samuku natte iku.)

If these forms keep slipping out of reach, the Language Gym gives you structured grammar and conjugation practice. Then take one sentence into a real exchange. The feedback you get will teach you more than another ten minutes of staring at the table.