～てくる (2) (emerging change)

Japanese Grammar Basic Japanese ★★★★ 4/5 neutral くるkuru
読み くる
ローマ字 kuru
形 Verb て-form + くる/きます
漢字の分解 来 (らい/く.る) — come, arrive

意味

An auxiliary verb construction where くる follows the て form to express that a process or change has begun and progressed up to the present moment. It describes an emerging or continuing change observed from the speaker's current perspective.

This temporal use of てくる indicates that a change or state has been developing from some point in the past up to the present. The speaker perceives the change as having gradually approached or accumulated over time. Common scenarios include weather changes, emotional shifts, physical sensations, and social trends. This contrasts with the temporal use of ていく, which projects changes forward into the future. てくる looks backward from the present, while ていく looks forward. For example, 寒くなってきた means 'it has gotten cold' (change up to now), while 寒くなっていく means 'it will keep getting cold' (change from now onward). The pattern works naturally with change-of-state verbs and adjectives describing gradual transitions.

例文

  1. だんだんお腹が空いてきた。
  2. 最近日本語が分かるようになってきました。
  3. 空が暗くなってきた。

使い方ガイド

場面: spoken, written, everyday

トーン: reflective

正しい言い方

  • 最近仕事が忙しくなってきた。
  • 少しずつ春の気配を感じるようになってきました。
  • 練習のおかげで上手になってきた。

避ける言い方

  • だんだん暖かくなっていく。(Using ていく to describe a change that has already occurred up to now — use てきた for past-to-present change) → だんだん暖かくなってきた。
  • 最近疲れがたまっていった。(Using ていった for a state you currently feel building — use てきた for changes experienced up to the present) → 最近疲れがたまってきた。

起源と歴史

The temporal meaning of てくる is a metaphorical extension of physical movement toward the speaker. Just as something physically approaches, a change or state is perceived as 'coming toward' the speaker's present moment, creating the sense of gradual emergence.

文化的背景

世代: All ages

社会的背景: Universal

関連フレーズ

～て (て form) The て form is one of the most versatile verb and adjective conjugations in Japanese. It connects clauses, forms compound verbs, makes requests, and serves as the base for many auxiliary constructions such as ている, てしまう, and ておく. ～てくる (1) (directional) An auxiliary verb construction where くる follows the て form to express that someone or something moves toward the speaker. It indicates physical movement in the direction of the speaker's location. ～てみる (try doing) An auxiliary verb construction where みる follows the て form to express trying or attempting an action to see what happens or what it is like. It conveys the nuance of doing something experimentally or for the first time. ～ことができる (able to) A construction expressing ability or possibility. It states that doing a particular action is possible, either because of personal skill, circumstances, or permission. It is the formal equivalent of the potential form of verbs. ～すぎる (too much) An auxiliary verb attached to verb stems and adjective stems to express that something is done excessively or a state is excessive. It conveys the meaning of 'too much' or 'overly.' ～ていく (1) (moving away) An auxiliary verb construction where いく follows the て form of a verb to indicate that an action or movement proceeds in a direction away from the speaker or a reference point. It describes going somewhere while doing something, or doing something and then going. ～ていく (2) (ongoing change) An auxiliary verb construction where いく follows the て form of a verb to express that an action or state continues to change or progress from the present into the future. It describes a gradual, ongoing shift moving forward in time. ～ておく (in advance) An auxiliary verb attached to the て form indicating that an action is done in advance, in preparation for a future need or situation. It conveys the idea of doing something ahead of time and leaving the result in place.
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