群がる・叢がる・簇がる|むらがるmuragaru[3]nakadaka (mid-high)
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Which spelling to use
群がる群がる is the most common written form and the practical choice for learners; it expresses “to swarm” or “to gather.”
叢がる叢がる is a rarely used written variant of 群がる. Because it is uncommon, learners will seldom see it and should generally choose 群がる instead.
簇がる簇がる is a rarely used written variant of 群がる. Because it is uncommon, learners will seldom see it and should generally choose 群がる instead.
Definitions
- godan verb, intransitive verbto swarm; to gather
Conjugation
| Dictionary form | 群がる（むらがる） |
|---|---|
| Polite (masu) | 群がります（むらがります） |
| Negative (nai) | 群がらない（むらがらない） |
| polite (masen) | 群がりません（むらがりません） |
| classical zu / nu | 群がらず・群がらぬ（むらがらず・むらがらぬ） |
| Past (ta) | 群がった（むらがった） |
| polite (mashita) | 群がりました（むらがりました） |
| Past negative (nakatta) | 群がらなかった（むらがらなかった） |
| polite (masen deshita) | 群がりませんでした（むらがりませんでした） |
| Te form | 群がって（むらがって） |
| Potential | 群がれる（むらがれる） |
| Passive | 群がられる（むらがられる） |
| Causative | 群がらせる（むらがらせる） |
| Causative passive | 群がらせられる・群がらされる（むらがらせられる・むらがらされる） |
| Conditional (ba) | 群がれば（むらがれば） |
| tara | 群がったら（むらがったら） |
| Volitional | 群がろう（むらがろう） |
| polite (mashou) | 群がりましょう（むらがりましょう） |
| Imperative | 群がれ（むらがれ） |
Common forms generated by rule; see the senses for honorific or irregular usage.
Synonyms & antonyms
- Synonym詰め掛けるつめかけるNeutralCrowds surging to and packing one spot, as in 「報道陣が詰め掛ける」. It stresses movement toward a place; 「群がる」 stresses clustering in swarms.
- SynonymたかるCasualColloquial: insects or people crowding round; also sponging off others or extorting money, as in 「蟻が砂糖にたかる」; carries a negative shade.
- Synonym集まるあつまるNeutralThe everyday word for gathering or assembling. Unlike 「群がる」, it does not stress large numbers or a dense, packed crowd.
- Synonym群れるむれるNeutralBand together or move as a group, as in 「群れて行動する」; often carries a negative nuance of acting without independence rather than physically swarming.
- Synonym群集ぐんしゅうWrittenWritten/formal: many people or animals gathering, as in 「群集心理」; stresses the state of being gathered rather than the act of swarming.
- Synonym蝟集いしゅうWrittenWritten/formal: things densely packed like hedgehog spines; rare in modern Japanese, so reserve it for literary or formal prose.
- Synonym群れ集うむれつどうWrittenGather in flocks or throngs; a literary verb used far less often than 「群がる」.
- Synonym雲集うんしゅうWrittenWritten/formal: masses gathering like clouds, as in 「群衆が雲集する」; a literary expression rarely heard in speech.
- SynonymひしめくWrittenPacked tight with people jostling, as in 「人がひしめく」; stresses a full, squeezed space rather than the act of swarming together.
- Related人だかりひとだかりNeutralA noun for a crowd massed in one spot, as in 「店の前に人だかり」; covers onlookers, queues and the like. Use it for the crowd itself, not the act of swarming.
- Related押し寄せるおしよせるNeutralSurge or press in with force, as in 「波が押し寄せる」; stresses the momentum of the advance, while 「群がる」 stresses clustering in swarms.
- Related立て込むたてこむNeutralA place being crowded, or one's schedule and work piling up; stresses being packed or busy rather than people swarming together.
- Antonym散るちるNeutralPetals falling or a crowd breaking up and dispersing; the opposite of the gathering that 「群がる」 describes.
- Antonym離れるはなれるNeutralLeave, move apart or separate, as in 「群れから離れる」; the opposite of gathering together.
Use 「群がる」 for people, insects or animals swarming together, as in 「蟻が群がる」「人が群がる」. For plain everyday gathering pick 「集まる」; for crowds surging to a spot 「詰め掛ける」; for a forceful surge 「押し寄せる」; for packed, jostling spaces 「ひしめく」; for dispersing, 「散る」.
Usage comparisons are AI-assisted and cross-checked by multiple models; for study reference only
Japanese definitions
Kanji in this word
English equivalents
See also
