集う|つどうtsudou[2]nakadaka (mid-high)
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- godan verb, intransitive verbto meet; to assemble; to congregate
Conjugation
| Dictionary form | 集う(つどう) |
|---|---|
| Polite (masu) | 集います(つどいます) |
| Negative (nai) | 集わない(つどわない) |
| polite (masen) | 集いません(つどいません) |
| classical zu / nu | 集わず・集わぬ(つどわず・つどわぬ) |
| Past (ta) | 集った(つどった) |
| polite (mashita) | 集いました(つどいました) |
| Past negative (nakatta) | 集わなかった(つどわなかった) |
| polite (masen deshita) | 集いませんでした(つどいませんでした) |
| Te form | 集って(つどって) |
| Potential | 集える(つどえる) |
| Passive | 集われる(つどわれる) |
| Causative | 集わせる(つどわせる) |
| Causative passive | 集わせられる・集わされる(つどわせられる・つどわされる) |
| Conditional (ba) | 集えば(つどえば) |
| tara | 集ったら(つどったら) |
| Volitional | 集おう(つどおう) |
| polite (mashou) | 集いましょう(つどいましょう) |
| Imperative | 集え(つどえ) |
Common forms generated by rule; see the senses for honorific or irregular usage.
- Synonym集まるあつまるNeutralThe everyday default for gathering, covering things as well as people; 「集う」 is for people or animals uniting over a shared purpose or interest, with an elegant tone.
- Synonym会するかいするWrittenWritten/formal verb for people meeting or assembling with a set aim, as in 「一堂に会する」; 「集う」 leans more elegant and lyrical.
- Synonym寄り集まるよりあつまるNeutralFocuses on scattered people or things drifting together into one place; 「集う」 centers on like-minded people coming together.
- Synonym集合しゅうごうNeutralAssembling at an agreed time and place, as in 「駅前に集合」; 「集う」 implies no appointment.
- Synonym集結しゅうけつWrittenMassing, chiefly of troops or forces, as in 「兵力を集結」; it can also be used transitively.
- Synonym寄り合うよりあうNeutralMeans several people crowding into one spot, but is used less often; 「集う」 is more elegant and usually implies gathering for a common purpose.
- Related会合かいごうNeutralHighlights a purposeful get-together, as in 「会合を開く」, and works mostly as a noun; 「集う」 is a verb.
- Related集会しゅうかいNeutralPoints to an organized mass gathering, as in 「集会の自由」; 「集う」 carries no sense of organization.
- Related参集さんしゅうWrittenWritten word for people arriving and assembling at a place, as in 「会場に参集」; 「集う」 is more elegant and carries the warmth of coming together.
- Related会同かいどうWrittenA rare written word for gathering in order to hold a meeting; 「集う」 is not limited to meetings and covers coming together generally.
- RelatedたむろするNeutralGathering in a group and staying put, also troops being stationed; for idle loitering it often sounds negative, like young people hanging around a shop entrance.
- Antonym散るちるNeutralScatter or fall, as petals do; it is the opposite of 「集う」 in the sense of gathering.
- Antonym離散するWrittenA written word for dispersal or separation, often of family members torn apart; the opposite of 「集う」, which is about coming together.
Use 「集う」 for an elegant tone when people with a shared purpose or interest come together, as in 「仲間が集う」. For everyday gathering say 「集まる」, for meeting at an agreed time and place 「集合」, for a group hanging out 「屯する」. The opposites are 「散る」 and 「離散する」.
Usage comparisons are AI-assisted and cross-checked by multiple models; for study reference only


