Translation guide
The English verb 'gather' covers several related ideas: bringing things or people together, collecting information or resources, and concluding or inferring. This guide organizes the most useful Japanese expressions by these core meanings.
To cause people or objects to come together, often for a purpose.
The most common transitive verb for gathering people or things. Used for both concrete objects and abstract items like information.
Please gather the materials.
He gathered his classmates.
Intransitive: people or things gather (come together) on their own. Use when the subject itself assembles.
A lot of people gathered in the park.
Formal or official gathering, often used for scheduled assemblies or military contexts.
Everyone, please gather in the lobby.
To accumulate items, facts, or materials over time, often through effort.
Same verb as above, but here the focus is on amassing data, evidence, or supplies.
We are gathering opinions through a survey.
Formal term for systematic collection, such as data, stamps, or waste.
Garbage collection is on Tuesdays.
To store up, save, or accumulate resources like money, food, or energy. Not for people.
To deduce or realize something from available information.
A natural pattern meaning 'it is understood that...' or 'I gather that...'. Often used with ようだ or らしい.
From his story, I gathered what was going on.
To sense, infer, or gather from subtle cues. Often used when reading between the lines.
To build up or accumulate force or pace.
To pull cloth into pleats or gathers, as in sewing.
To draw or gather fabric. Also used for pushing things to one side.
Gather the waist of the skirt and sew.
集める is transitive (someone gathers things/people), while 集まる is intransitive (things/people gather). Use を with 集める and が/は with 集まる.
English 'I gather that...' is not directly translated with 集める. Use patterns like 〜とわかる or 〜ようだ to express inference naturally.
They gather food supplies for the winter.
彼の沈黙から、何かを察した。
I gathered something from his silence.
風が強まってきた。
The wind is gathering strength.