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If 来る is so inherently related to the direction towards the speaker so that you cannot use 来る for actions of going towards the person you are speaking to, as was explained by examples here, then why is 迎えに来ます used to mean "I'll come to pick you up" correct?

An illogical set phrase? An exception? The only one? How did it come to existence?

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macraf
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1 Answers1

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I don't think you can say 迎えに来る to mean "I'll come pick you up."

Example:

Person A arrives at the airport, and calls person B: 迎えに来ますか？ (Will you come pick me up?)

Person B responds: はい、迎えに行きます　(Yes, I'll come pick you up)

Eman Senpai
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  • Check [this](http://ejje.weblio.jp/sentence/content/%E8%BF%8E%E3%81%88%E3%81%AB%E6%9D%A5%E3%82%8B) – macraf Oct 23 '15 at 06:55
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    I find nothing wrong with this answer. @macraf You're referring to this example?: "三時までに迎えに来る = I shall come for you by three" Then I have to say this example is incorrect. I don't know why it's not "3時までに迎えに行く", which is what everyone says. – naruto Oct 23 '15 at 10:28
  • @naruto There are a few more examples on that page (although of low credibility, still seems not everyone says so). I found an example in my corporate email, which was why I asked this (and of course I searched specifically because of another question this morning). The email I found also indicated the time, which made me think, if the meaning of 11時に迎えに行く is unambiguous in Japanese. Is it the time of departing to meet someone, or arriving? – macraf Oct 23 '15 at 10:52
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    @macraf Ah, I found another example, "私は絶対にあなたを迎えに来るからね". Well, this still sounds to me like 私 and あなた are at the same place, just before saying goodbye, and 私 is saying "I'll *come* here to meet you (again)." If 私 were in Japan and あなた were in the US, 私 would normally say 絶対に迎えに行くからね. – naruto Oct 23 '15 at 11:09
  • @naruto Hmm... That's marked "Weblio Email例文集"... Could be that they just parted, one crossed the border check and sends a farewell email... Or could be that the example is wrong. The next one 私はあなたを迎えに来るのでそこで待っていてください also sounds strange for an email. What about this one... 私は彼女を迎えに来るのが少し遅れるかも知れない ? – macraf Oct 23 '15 at 11:24
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    わたし may say あなたを迎えに来るからね if they've just parted and わたし's mind is kind of still there with あなた. "私はあなたを迎えに来るのでそこで待っていて" sounds unnatural to me, at least as a conversation between mature adults. – naruto Oct 23 '15 at 11:40
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    As an exception, when an adult talks to a young kid, [word choice tends to be based on the standpoint of the kid](http://japanese.stackexchange.com/a/25953/5010). A mother may say to her child, "ママが来るまで、幼稚園で待っててね" rather than "私が行くまで". – naruto Oct 23 '15 at 12:05
  • I think both are correct as long as person B is going to person A instead of a thrid person. – Derpius Oct 23 '15 at 18:23
  • @naruto If "わたし's mind is kind of still there with あなた" then [this answer](http://japanese.stackexchange.com/a/28831/11104) suggesting that "emotional location" can be taken into account when choosing between 行く and 来る, not only "physical location," is quite right, isn't it? – macraf Oct 24 '15 at 00:18