いってきます（いってきます、iっtekimasu）
- I'm going

いってきます is a common Japanese phrase used when someone is leaving a place, typically their home or office, and will be back later. It signifies that the person is going out and intends to return. The word itself is a short form of a longer phrase, indicating the speaker is going somewhere and "will come back".

⚫︎行ってきます！ Translation: I'm leaving! / I'll go and come back! ⚫︎母に「行ってきます」と言って、学校へ行った。 Translation: I said "I'm leaving" to my mother and went to school. ⚫︎すみません、ちょっと行ってきます。 Translation: Excuse me, I'll be right back.

⚫︎It's used when leaving a place, usually a home or an office, to inform the people present that you are departing and expect to return. ⚫︎It's generally said to family members, roommates, or colleagues. ⚫︎It is typically responded to with 行ってらっしゃい (itte rasshai), which means "go and come back" or "have a good trip." ⚫︎The speaker can use いってきます regardless of who they are talking to, which implies respect to some extent. However, it's less formal than other phrases, and therefore unsuitable in very formal situations.

⚫︎It is written in hiragana as いってきます. ⚫︎It is almost always written in hiragana. There is no official kanji version commonly used. ⚫︎Variations in okurigana are not applicable here.

⚫︎While いってきます is very specific, similar phrases include: ⚫︎出かけます (dekakemasu): I'm going out. (More general) ⚫︎行ってきますね (itte kimasu ne): I'm leaving, okay? (More casual) ⚫︎行って参ります (itte mairimasu): I'm going (and will return). (More formal, especially in business)

⚫︎ただいま (tadaima): I'm home! (Used upon returning) ⚫︎おかえり (okaeri): Welcome back! (Used to greet someone who has returned) (This is an answer to ただいま)

朝ご飯を食べてから、学校へ行く前に「いってきます」と言いました。 ・Translation: After eating breakfast, I said "I'm leaving" before going to school. ・Explanation: This sentence describes the common action of saying いってきます before leaving for school in the morning.

友達の家に遊びに行く前に「いってきます」と家族に伝えました。 ・Translation: I told my family "I'm leaving" before going to my friend's house to play. ・Explanation: This shows how いってきます is used when leaving the house for leisure activities.

⚫︎The word comes from the verb 行く (iku) - to go, combined with the verb 来る (kuru) - to come, and the auxiliary verb ます (masu) - a polite form, or its casual form くる (kuru). ⚫︎The full form of いってきます would be roughly translated as "I am going, and will come back". The structure implies both the action of leaving and the intention of returning.