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来年 (らいねん, rainen) Japanese meaning: next year | Kotomora

来らい年ねん

ら

い

ね

ん

Common word›JLPTN5›Freq.FrequencyTop 5,000

Meanings

1

Refers to the calendar year following the current one. Can be used as a noun or adverbially without a particle.

来らい年ねん、日本にほんに行いく予よ定ていです。

I plan to go to Japan next year.

来らい年ねんの春はるに卒そつ業ぎょうします。

I will graduate next spring.

Usage patterns

来らい年ねんこそ〈動どう詞し〉next year for sure, (I will do ...)
来らい年ねんこそ日本にほん語ご能のう力りょく試し験けんに合ごう格かくしたい。
I really want to pass the JLPT next year, no matter what.

Expressions

来らい年ねんのことを言いうと鬼おにが笑わらうnobody knows the morrow; speak of next year and the ogres laugh

Kanji

来come, due, next
年year, counter for years

Related words

来らい春しゅん
来年 means 'next year' in general, while 来春 narrows the reference to the spring season of that year.
明みょう年ねんN1
来年 is the everyday, spoken word for 'next year', while 明年 is a formal or written equivalent used in official documents and speeches.
次じ年ねん度どN2
来年 is the everyday word for 'next year' on the calendar, while 次年度 is used specifically for the next fiscal or academic year in institutional contexts.

Opposites

去きょ年ねんN5
来年 means 'next year' while 去年 means 'last year', the two forming a natural opposite pair around the present year.
昨さく年ねんN3
来年 means 'next year', the direct opposite in time of 昨年 'last year'.
今年ことしN5
来年 means 'next year', while 今年 means 'this year'.
本ほん年ねんN2

Don't confuse with

再さ来らい年ねんN5
来年 means 'next year' (one year ahead), while 再来年 means 'the year after next' (two years ahead)—learners often mix up how far in the future each points.
翌よく年ねんN3
来年 means 'next year' counted from now, whereas 翌年 means 'the year after' some other reference point in the past or future, so they can't be swapped freely.

Word family

来らい年ねん度ど
next fiscal year; next year
再さ来らい年ねんN5
year after next

Etymology

Compound of 来 (rai, 'coming') and 年 (nen, 'year').

来年 means 'next year', the opposite time reference from 本年, which means 'this year'.