Use 拾う when you pick up something you find, such as a wallet or litter.

The idea

拾う is a transitive godan verb. Mark the object with を and the place of the action with で. Its polite form is 拾います; its て form is 拾って.

Patterns to compare
Dictionary formPolite non-pastPolite negativePolite pastて form
拾う拾います拾いません拾いました拾って

Examples

  • 道みちで財布さいふを拾ひろいました。I picked up a wallet on the road.
  • 浜辺はまべできれいな貝殻かいがらを拾ひろいます。I pick up pretty shells on the beach.
  • 公園こうえんのごみを拾ひろって捨すてました。I picked up litter in the park and threw it away.
  • 落おちているペンを拾ひろってください。Please pick up the pen lying there.
  • 私わたしは拾ひろった鍵かぎを交番こうばんに届とどけました。I handed the key I found in to the police box.
  • 危あぶないので、ガラスの破片はへんは拾ひろいません。I do not pick up glass fragments because they are dangerous.

Read-aloud uses a synthetic Japanese voice available on your device. Voice quality and availability vary; it does not assess your pronunciation.

Watch out

Finding something is 見つける, while searching for it is 探す. 拾う describes picking it up; finding it does not necessarily mean picking it up.

Try it yourself

  1. Write the polite non-past form.

    Show answer or example answer

    拾います

    拾います is the polite non-past form; context determines whether it refers to the present or future.

  2. Write the て form.

    Show answer or example answer

    拾って

    拾って is the て form: a godan verb ending in う changes to って.

  3. Choose the form meaning “picked up” a wallet on the road.

    Show answer or example answer

    拾いました

    拾いました means “picked up”; 探しました means “searched for” and does not express picking it up.

Use it today

Describe something you picked up, say where you found it, and change your sentence to the polite past.