音読み: バイ
訓読み: かう
画数: 12
部首: 貝（かい）
Meaning
Buy / Purchase
- Basic forms
- 買う — to buy / base form
- 買います — polite / buy / masu form
- 買った — past / bought / ta form
- 買って — te-form / buy (and…) / linking / request
- 買わない — negative / don’t buy / negative
- 買えば — if (someone) buys / conditional
- 買え — buy! / imperative
- Other common forms
- 買いたい — want to buy / 〜たい form
- 買われる — to be bought / passive
- 買わせる — make someone buy / causative
- More
- 買おう — let’s buy / 〜よう form
- 買わなかった — past negative / didn’t buy
- 買っている — buying / have bought / progressive / state
買う (かう) is a godan (う-verb). The て- and た-forms follow the regular pattern: う → って / った → 買って, 買った. This verb frequently appears in compound verbs such as 買い込む and 買い替える.
- 買い物 — shopping
- 買い手 — buyer
- 売買 — buying and selling
- 不買 — boycott
- 購買 — purchase / buying
- 仲買 — brokerage / broker
- 買収 — acquisition / buyout
Compound - tap to expand
- 買い込む — to stock up; to buy in bulk
- 買い替える — to replace (by buying a new one)
- 買い取る — to buy (something) from someone; to purchase outright
- 買い占める — to buy up; to corner the market
- まとめ買い — bulk buying
- 大人買い — buying everything at once (adult splurge)
買 is closely tied to money and trade. The radical 貝 refers to shells once used as currency, which naturally connects this character to buying, selling, and value.