買い求める・買求める|かいもとめるkaimotomeru[5]nakadaka (mid-high)
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Which spelling to use
買い求める買い求める is the more common written form, and beginners should use it by default when writing Japanese.
買求める買求める is a less common written variant of 買い求める; learners are less likely to need it as their default form.
Definitions
- ichidan verb, transitive verbto buy
Conjugation
| Dictionary form | 買い求める（かいもとめる） |
|---|---|
| Polite (masu) | 買い求めます（かいもとめます） |
| Negative (nai) | 買い求めない（かいもとめない） |
| polite (masen) | 買い求めません（かいもとめません） |
| classical zu / nu | 買い求めず・買い求めぬ（かいもとめず・かいもとめぬ） |
| Past (ta) | 買い求めた（かいもとめた） |
| polite (mashita) | 買い求めました（かいもとめました） |
| Past negative (nakatta) | 買い求めなかった（かいもとめなかった） |
| polite (masen deshita) | 買い求めませんでした（かいもとめませんでした） |
| Te form | 買い求めて（かいもとめて） |
| Potential | 買い求められる（かいもとめられる） |
| Passive | 買い求められる（かいもとめられる） |
| Causative | 買い求めさせる（かいもとめさせる） |
| Causative passive | 買い求めさせられる（かいもとめさせられる） |
| Conditional (ba) | 買い求めれば（かいもとめれば） |
| tara | 買い求めたら（かいもとめたら） |
| Volitional | 買い求めよう（かいもとめよう） |
| polite (mashou) | 買い求めましょう（かいもとめましょう） |
| Imperative | 買い求めろ（かいもとめろ） |
Common forms generated by rule; see the senses for honorific or irregular usage.
Synonyms & antonyms
- Synonym購入こうにゅうWrittenWritten/formal prose. Buying, common in procedures and announcements, e.g. 「購入手続き」; 「買い求める」 is also slightly formal, with a nuance of wanting something and buying it.
- Synonym買うかうNeutralNeutral. The most general word for buying; it also covers valuing highly and incurring (anger, etc.). 「買い求める」 is more formal, mostly in narration or written prose.
- Synonym購買こうばいWrittenWritten/formal prose. Buying or procurement, seen in 「購買意欲」 and 「購買部」; also used formally for buying goods. 「買い求める」 stresses wanting something and going to buy it.
- Synonym購うあがなうWrittenWritten/formal prose, archaic and literary: to buy or pay for. Rare in modern usage; in everyday use say 「買う」 or 「買い求める」.
- Related買取かいとりNeutralNeutral noun for buying out or purchasing, often used-goods trade-ins, as in 「買取価格」; the buyer may be a shop, an individual, or a company.
- Related買い上げるかいあげるNeutralNeutral. Governments and public agencies buying from the private sector; shops also use 「お買い上げ」 as an honorific way to refer to a customer's purchase.
- Related買い入れるかいいれるWrittenWritten/formal prose. Buying in, mostly for commercial stocking; individuals can also use it for buying furniture or books.
- Related買収ばいしゅうWrittenWritten/formal prose. Acquiring companies or land, and also bribery; the object is a company, rights, or a person — never everyday goods.
- Related買い取るかいとるNeutralNeutral. Buying out or acquiring, with emphasis on transfer of ownership, as in 「土地を買い取る」; 「買い求める」 stresses wanting something and buying it.
- Related買い付けるかいつけるNeutralNeutral. Buying in large quantities, mostly merchants stocking up, as in 「海外で買い付ける」; also buying regularly at a place. 「買い求める」 stresses wanting something and buying it.
- Related買い受けるかいうけるWrittenFairly formal. Paying money to obtain goods or rights, mostly in legal documents; also used to narrate buying old books. Stiffer than 「買い求める」.
- Related購求こうきゅうWrittenWritten/formal prose and very rare; the same meaning as 「買い求める」 but more archaic. For everyday writing, 「購入」 is enough.
- Antonym売り払ううりはらうNeutralNeutral. Selling everything off and parting with the goods — the opposite direction from the buying of 「買い求める」.
- Antonym売却するWrittenWritten/formal prose for selling, mostly land and assets, as in 「土地を売却」; the opposite of the buying done with 「買い求める」.
For everyday buying, use 「買う」; in written or formal prose, 「購入」. 「買い求める」 is a somewhat formal way to say you wanted something and went to buy it, as in 「お土産を買い求める」. For acquiring or buying out, use 「買い取る」; for selling off, 「売り払う」.
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
