kommen
to come
To move toward a place or person, especially toward the speaker, or to arrive at a destination.
EXAMPLE
Kommst du bitte mal her?
Could you please come here for a moment?
kommen
to come
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Meanings
kommen aus
to come from
To have one's origin or background in a particular place or situation.
EXAMPLE
Ich komme aus Deutschland.
I come from Germany.
kommen
to happen
To happen, occur, or come about.
EXAMPLE
Wie ist es denn zu diesem Missverständnis gekommen?
How did this misunderstanding happen?
kommen
to go
To be placed or put in a specific spot.
EXAMPLE
In die Mitte des Tisches kommt die Geburtstagstorte.
The birthday cake goes in the middle of the table.
kommen auf
to think of
To have an idea, remember something, or find a solution.
EXAMPLE
Ich komme einfach nicht auf seinen Namen.
I just can't think of his name.
kommen
to come
To be next in a sequence or order.
EXAMPLE
Nach dem Buchstaben C kommt das D.
After the letter C comes D.
kommen zu
to come to
To reach a certain state, result, or point.
EXAMPLE
Die Verhandlungen sind zu einem erfolgreichen Abschluss gekommen.
The negotiations have come to a successful conclusion.
Usage tips
Auxiliary verb in the perfect tense
As a verb of movement, 'kommen' always forms the perfect tense with the auxiliary verb 'sein'. Using 'haben' is a common mistake.
EXAMPLE
Ich bin gestern Abend spät nach Hause gekommen.
I came home late yesterday evening.
Origin with 'aus'
To express origin, 'kommen' is fixed with the preposition 'aus' and the dative. This is one of the first and most important phrases learners encounter.
EXAMPLE
Meine Familie kommt aus Italien.
My family comes from Italy.
Having an idea
The fixed expression 'auf etwas kommen' means to have an idea or to remember something. The preposition 'auf' requires the accusative here.
EXAMPLE
Wie bist du auf diese geniale Lösung gekommen?
How did you think of this brilliant solution?
Reaching a result
The combination 'zu etwas kommen' describes reaching a result or endpoint. The preposition 'zu' requires the dative. Typical collocations are 'zu einem Ergebnis kommen' (to come to a result) or 'zu einem Abschluss kommen' (to come to a conclusion).
EXAMPLE
Die Wissenschaftler sind zu einem überraschenden Ergebnis gekommen.
The scientists came to a surprising result.
Sentence structure when placing
In the meaning 'to be placed', the subject often comes after the verb, while the location expression is in position 1. This sentence structure emphasizes where something belongs.
EXAMPLE
Auf den ersten Platz kommt der Gewinner des Wettbewerbs.
In first place goes the winner of the competition.
Asking about what happened
To ask how something happened, the impersonal construction 'Wie ist es zu ... gekommen?' is often used. The event is in the dative.
EXAMPLE
Wie ist es zu diesem Streit gekommen?
How did this argument happen?
Direction and destination
In the basic meaning of movement, 'kommen' is often combined with prepositions that indicate a direction or destination, such as 'zu', 'nach', 'in', or 'an'.
EXAMPLE
Er ist zu mir gekommen, um um Hilfe zu bitten.
He came to me to ask for help.
Compare with
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kommen vs gehen
to go
Gehen and kommen can both express movement to a place. Gehen describes leaving your current location or moving away from the person speaking, while kommen describes moving toward the person speaking or toward the destination. The direction of view is therefore decisive.
kommen
Ich bin im Wohnzimmer, bitte komm jetzt zu mir.
I’m in the living room; please come to me now.
gehen
Ich bin im Flur, bitte geh jetzt ins Wohnzimmer.
I’m in the hallway; please go to the living room now.
In real life
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