来

lái

HSK 1

来 — lái

1. to come; arrive

   他现在要来了。 tā xiànzài yàolái le — He is coming now.

2. used as a substitute for a more specific verb (e.g. 'come and do sth')

   你来帮我一下。 nǐ lái bāng wǒ yīxià — Come (and) help me a bit.

3. directional complement 'hither' (indicates motion toward the speaker)

   请把书拿回来。 qǐng bǎ shū ná huílái — Please bring the book back (here).

4. ever since (as in 'since ancient times')

   自古以来，人们就崇拜太阳。 zìgǔyǐlái rénmen jiù chóngbài tàiyáng — Since ancient times, people have worshipped the sun.

5. (prefix) the coming; next (e.g. 'the next life')

   来世是很多宗教谈论的主题。 láishì shì hěnduō zōngjiào tánlùn de zhǔtí — The next life is a topic discussed by many religions.

6. used between two verbs meaning 'in order to' (indicating purpose)

   我回家来吃饭。 wǒ huíjiā lái chīfàn — I returned home in order to eat (i.e., came home to eat).

7. after a round number: approximately (e.g. '来个十次' ~ 'about ten times')

   我们来个十次试试看。 wǒmen lái gè shícì shìshìkàn — Let's try it about ten times.

8. used after 得 or 不 to indicate possibility or impossibility (can/cannot)

   这个问题我解得来。 zhège wèntí wǒ jiě délái — I can solve this problem.