来 (lái): to come, (used as a substitute for a more specific verb), hither (directional complement for motion toward the speaker, as in 回來|回来)
来 (lái) is a Chinese character meaning “to come.” Classified as HSK Level 1 (HSK 3.0 Standard, CLEC 2022), it is composed of 未 (structural) and 丷 (structural). It ranks #15 in character frequency (SUBTLEX-CH corpus).
Etymologically derived, 来 a wheat plant that has not yet borne fruit; compare 來. Its radical form 木 (tree) appears in many related characters such as 本 (běn, (bound form) root), 机 (jī, machine, opportunity), 条 (tiáo, strip).
Definitions
- to come
- (used as a substitute for a more specific verb)
- hither (directional complement for motion toward the speaker, as in 回來|回来)
Etymology & Origin
ideographicA wheat plant that has not yet borne fruit; compare 來
Decomposition: ⿻未丷 (layout: overlay)
Stroke Order
Practice writing 来 with real-time feedback — trace each stroke in the correct order and build muscle memory in the HanziFeed app.
Words & Compounds
HSK Vocabulary with 来
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning | HSK |
|---|---|---|---|
| 起来verb | qǐ lai | to stand up | 2 |
| 回来verb | huí lai | to return | 2 |
| 出来verb | chū lái | to come out | 2 |
| 过来verb | guò lái | to come over | 2 |
| 下来verb | xià lai | to come down | 2 |
| 从来adverb | cóng lái | always | 4 |
| 看来verb | kàn lai | apparently | 3 |
| 进来verb | jìn lái | to come in | 2 |
| 来自verb | lái zì | to come from (a place) | 3 |
| 本来adjective/adverb | běn lái | original | 4 |
| 未来adjective/noun | wèi lái | future | 5 |
| 原来noun/adjective/adverb | yuán lái | original | 4 |
| 后来noun | hòu lái | afterwards | 3 |
| 以来noun | yǐ lái | since (used after a specified time or event) | 5 |
| 到来verb | dào lái | to arrive | 4 |
| 将来noun | jiāng lái | in the future | 4 |
| 来源noun/verb | lái yuán | source (of information etc) | 5 |
| 用来verb | yòng lái | to be used for | 4 |
| 上来verb | shàng lái | to come up | 2 |
| 来临verb | lái lín | to approach | 6 |
| 来不及verb | lái bu jí | there's not enough time (to do sth) | 4 |
| 来得及verb | lái de jí | to have enough time | 4 |
| 前来verb | qián lái | to come (formal) | 5 |
| 近来noun | jìn lái | recently | 6 |
| 来往verb | lái wǎng | to come and go | 6 |
| 外来adjective | wài lái | external | 6 |
| 往来verb | wǎng lái | dealings | 6 |
| 自来水noun | zì lái shuǐ | running water | 6 |
| 由来noun | yóu lái | origin | 6 |
| 近年来 | jìn nián lái | for the past few years | 5 |
来 appears in 126 compound words: 39 as the first character, 52 as the last, and 9 in a middle position. Compound statistics computed from SUBTLEX-CH and HSK 3.0 vocabulary data.
Strongest Collocations
Characters that most frequently co-occur with 来 in natural Chinese text, ranked by NPMI (Normalized Pointwise Mutual Information) — a statistical measure of association strength.
Idioms & Chengyu (60)
extreme adversity marks the beginning of fortune; when worse comes to the worst, things will turn for the better
Showing 12 of 60 idioms containing 来.
Example Sentences
春天来了，公园里的花儿都开了，吸引了许多游客前来观赏。
Chūntiān lái le, gōngyuán lǐ de huār dōu kāi le, xīyǐn le xǔduō yóukè qiánlái guānshǎng.
Spring has come, the flowers in the park have all bloomed, attracting many visitors to come and enjoy.
排山倒海 扑面而来!六百只宋代瓷碗在这叠成墙
pái shān dǎo hǎi pū miàn ér lái ! liù bǎi zhī sòng dài cí wǎn zài zhè dié chéng qiáng
Overwhelming and coming! Six hundred Song Dynasty porcelain bowls are stacked on this wall
视频丨繁荣昌盛,越来越好!这个春节听听大家给祖国的..
shì pín 丨 fán róng chāng shèng , yuè lái yuè hǎo ! zhè gè chūn jié tīng tīng dà jiā gěi zǔ guó de . .
Video丨Prosperity and prosperity, getting better and better! This Spring Festival, listen to what everyone has for the motherland:
一路走来,到了春节!上海静安祝您龙马精神、马到成...
yī lù zǒu lái , dào le chūn jié ! shǎng hǎi jìng ān zhù nín lóng mǎ jīng shén mǎ dào chéng . . .
All the way to the Spring Festival! Shanghai Jing'an wishes you the best of luck...
新春纳福迎新,就来凯德虹口商业中心,福气好物一站式..
xīn chūn nà fú yíng xīn , jiù lái kǎi dé hóng kǒu shāng yè zhōng xīn , fú qì hǎo wù yī zhàn shì . .
Come to CapitaLand Hongkou Commercial Center for a one-stop shop for good fortune and good fortune....
子弟兵给您送祝福啦,快来签收!
zǐ dì bīng gěi nín sòng zhù fú lā , kuài lái qiān shōu !
Our troops are sending you blessings—come sign for them!
我回来了！啊？我们有客人啊？
Wǒ huílai le! ā? wǒmen yǒu kèrén ā?
I'm back! Oh? Have we got a guest?
这是不是意味着你不会来了？
Zhè shìbùshì yìwèizhe nǐ bù huì lái le?
Does that mean you won't come?
他来这里的目的是什么？
Tā lái zhèlǐ de mùdì shì shénme?
For what purpose did he come here?
要不要再来一些沙拉？
Yàobù yào zài lái yīxiē shālā?
Would you like some more salad?
Character Family
Homophones — Characters pronounced lái
Frequently Asked Questions
What does 来 (lái) mean in Chinese?
What's the difference between 来 and 上?
How many strokes does 来 have?
What is the radical of 来?
What are the components of 来?
What are common words containing 来?
What characters sound the same as 来 (lái)?
Is 来 the same in simplified and traditional Chinese?
Practice writing 来 with real-time feedback
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