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N4Lesson notes · Oct 9, 2026

Carry in Japanese: 運はこぶ vs 持もつ and the verbs that mean "carry

"Carry" in Japanese is 運はこぶ (hakobu) when you move something from one place to another, and 持もつ (motsu) when you hold it in your hand or own it — and a handful of other verbs cover carrying on your back, in your arms, or in your pocket.

English gets away with one word for all of that. Japanese picks a verb based on how the thing is carried and why. Once you know which question to ask (am I moving it, holding it, or just having it with me?), the choice gets easy. This guide walks through the two main verbs, then the ones textbooks skip.

The basics

What does 運はこぶ mean?

運はこぶ means to carry something from one place to another — the point is the movement. It works for boxes, trays, patients, and even goods on a truck.

荷物にもつを二階にかいに運はこびます。 — I'll carry the luggage upstairs. (polite, neutral) 料理りょうりをテーブルに運はこんでください。 — Please carry the food to the table. (polite request, restaurant or home)

Notice that the sentence always has a destination, or at least a direction. 運はこぶ is about getting the object somewhere. You can use it with things far too big for a hand: トラックが荷物にもつを運はこぶ, "the truck carries the cargo."

What does 持もつ mean?

持もつ means to hold something in your hand, or to have it. The point is the grip, not the trip.

これ、持もっててください。 — Please hold this. (polite request, handing something over) 傘かさを持もっていますか。 — Do you have an umbrella? (polite, asking if someone has one with them)

持もつ has two faces. 持もつ in the plain form is the act of picking something up or holding it: 重おもい箱はこを持もつ, "to hold a heavy box." 持もっている (the ている form) is the state: "to have" or "to own." 車くるまを持もっている means "I own a car," not "I am holding a car."

How do you choose between them?

Ask whether the sentence cares about the trip or the grip. If the object is going somewhere, use 運はこぶ. If someone is just holding it or has it, use 持もつ.

彼かれは荷物にもつを持もって歩あるいている。 — He is walking while carrying his bag. (neutral, the bag is in his hand) 彼かれは荷物にもつを駅えきまで運はこんだ。 — He carried the luggage to the station. (neutral, the trip is the point)

A useful test is to try the English word "transport" or "deliver." If it fits, you probably want 運はこぶ. If "hold" or "have" fits, you want 持もつ. The same logic explains why 持もって行いく and 持もって来くる show up so often; we cover those in bring in Japanese: 持もってくる vs 持もっていく.

Beyond the basics

Which verb means "to carry around with you"?

持ち歩もちあるく (mochiaruku) means to carry something around as you go about your day. It is the verb for things that live in your bag or pocket.

現金げんきんを持ち歩もちあるかない人ひとが増ふえた。 — More people don't carry cash around. (neutral, a general statement) いつも辞書じしょを持もち歩あるいています。 — I always carry a dictionary with me. (polite, habit)

持ち歩もちあるく is 持もつ plus 歩あるく (to walk), so the picture is "hold and walk." The thing doesn't go to one destination. It simply travels with you. If you want a bag to put these things in, see bag in Japanese: かばん vs 袋ふくろ.

How do you say "carry on your back" or "carry in your arms"?

Use 背負せおう for the back and 抱かかえる for the arms. Both are physical verbs, and both turn into very common figures of speech.

彼かれは大おおきなリュックを背負せおっている。 — He is carrying a big backpack on his back. (neutral) 子こどもを抱かかえて走はしった。 — I ran carrying my child in my arms. (neutral, a little urgent)

背負せおう comes from 背せ (back), which you can see in back in Japanese: 背中せなか. 抱かかえる means to hold something against your body or in the crook of your arm. A big armful of laundry or a sleeping kid is 抱かかえる territory. Your hands are not the main carriers here. The back and the arms are.

Both verbs also carry weight in the emotional sense:

一人ひとりで責任せきにんを背負せおいわなくていいよ。 — You don't have to carry the responsibility alone. (casual, supportive) 今いま、大おおきな問題もんだいを抱かかえています。 — I'm dealing with a big problem right now. (polite, "I'm carrying a problem")

背負せおう is for burdens you take on (responsibility, debt, a nation's hopes). 抱かかえる is for problems you are stuck with (a worry, a debt, a heavy workload). In English both are "carry," and you often have to translate the feeling, not the verb.

Can 運はこぶ be used for things that aren't physical?

Yes. 運はこぶ also describes how things proceed, and 足あしを運はこぶ means to make the effort to go somewhere.

ご足労そくろういただきありがとうございます。 — Thank you for coming all this way. (formal, a related set phrase — it does not actually contain 運はこぶ) 何度なんどもお店みせに足あしを運はこびました。 — I went to the shop many times. (polite, "I carried my feet there") 話はなしがうまく運はこんでいる。 — The talks are going smoothly. (neutral, business)

足あしを運はこぶ is "to carry your feet" — you made the trip on purpose, so it stresses effort or sincerity. 話はなしが運はこぶ and 事ことが運はこぶ describe a matter moving forward step by step. You will meet these in news and in business Japanese more than in daily chat.

What is 持ち込もちこみ, and why is it on signs?

持ち込もちこみ is "bringing something into a place," and it is the word you see on signs and in rules. 持ち込もちこむ is the verb, and 持ち込もちこみ is the noun.

機内きない持ち込もちこみの荷物にもつは一ひとつだけです。 — You may take only one carry-on bag. (polite, an airline rule) 飲食物いんしょくぶつの持ち込もちこみは禁止きんしです。 — Bringing in food and drink is prohibited. (formal, a sign)

機内きない持ち込もちこみ ("carry-on") is the one to remember for travel. On signs, 持ち込もちこみ禁止きんし means "no outside items," and 持ち込もちこみ可か means "bring your own is fine." Both are written, not spoken.

How do you ask "Do you have it?" politely?

お持もちですか is the polite way to ask if someone has something. It is the honorific form of 持もっていますか.

ポイントカードはお持もちですか。 — Do you have a points card? (very polite, the standard shop-clerk question) お荷物にもつはお持もちしましょうか。 — Shall I carry your bag for you? (very polite, shop or hotel staff)

Same verb, two directions. お持もちですか uses the honorific お〜 to raise your action. お持もちしましょうか uses the humble form to lower the speaker's. You will hear both in any department store.

How does carrying sound in anime?

In anime, carrying lines are short and casual, and they show character. A strong friend or a dependable senior offers to take someone's load.

俺おれが運はこぶ。 — I'll carry it. (casual, masculine, "leave it to me") 持もってやるよ。 — I'll carry it for you. (casual, a little rough but kind)

The ~てやる ending means "I'll do it for you," and it can sound rough or proud depending on the voice. 運はこぶ is for moving a thing (or a wounded friend) somewhere. 持もってやる is for taking the bag off someone's hands. You hear both in school scenes, so listen for who says them and to whom.

Common mistakes

  • Translating every "carry" as 運はこぶ. 運はこぶ is about moving something to a place. "I always carry an umbrella" is 傘かさを持もち歩あるいている or 傘かさを持もっている. (Not 傘かさを運はこんでいる, which sounds like a delivery job.)
  • Mixing up 持もっている and 持もってくる. 持もっている means "to have" or "to hold." 持もってくる means "to bring (toward the speaker)." 傘かさを持もっていますか asks if you have one. 傘かさを持もってきましたか asks if you brought one.
  • Using 運はこぶ for a person you walk with. 人ひとを運はこぶ is cold, like "to transport a body" or "to move a patient." For helping a person, use 連つれて行いく (to take along) or 抱かかえる.
  • Misusing 持ち運もちはこぶ. 持ち運もちはこぶ means to carry something from place to place, and it is mostly seen in the noun form 持ち運もちはこび, as in 持ち運もちはこびできる ("portable"). It is not a general word for "carry." For everyday habit, use 持ち歩もちあるく.
  • Forgetting that 持もつ also means "to last." In 体からだが持もたない ("my body can't take it"), 持もつ means to hold up or endure. If a sentence has no object being held, check for this meaning.

Which carry verb should I use?

English idea Japanese verb What it stresses Example
Carry from A to B 運はこぶ The movement to a place 荷物にもつを運はこぶ
Hold in the hand 持もつ The grip 箱はこを持もつ
Have / own 持もっている The state of having 車くるまを持もっている
Carry around daily 持ち歩もちあるく Always with you 現金げんきんを持ち歩もちあるく
Carry on the back 背負せおう Back, or a burden リュックを背負せおう
Carry in the arms 抱かかえる Arms, or a problem 子こどもを抱かかえる
Take into a place 持ち込もちこむ Entering a space 機内きないに持ち込もちこむ
Make the trip (figurative) 足あしを運はこぶ Effort to go 店みせに足あしを運はこぶ

Practice

Build each answer before opening it. Questions 5 and 6 are a pair — the same English "carry," two different Japanese pictures.

1. Say "Please carry the food to the table."

Show answer

料理りょうりをテーブルに運はこんでください — the food is moving to a destination (the table), so 運はこぶ in the te-form plus ください.

2. Say "Do you have an umbrella?" using 持もつ.

Show answer

傘かさを持もっていますか — "to have" is the state of 持もっている, not 運はこぶ, because nothing is being moved anywhere.

3. Which verb fits "He carried the luggage to the station": 運はこんだ or 持もった?

Show answer

運はこんだ — there is a destination (the station), so the trip is the point. 持もった would only mean he picked it up.

4. Say "I always carry a dictionary with me."

Show answer

いつも辞書じしょを持もち歩あるいています — 持ち歩もちあるく is the "carry around" verb; the dictionary goes where you go with no single destination.

5. Say "I'm carrying a big backpack" (on your back).

Show answer

大おおきなリュックを背負せおっています — the object sits on the back, so 背負せおう. This is the pair to question 6.

6. Say "I ran carrying my child" (in your arms).

Show answer

子こどもを抱かかえて走はしりました — the child is held against the body, so 抱かかえる. Same English "carry," but arms instead of back.

7. What does 足あしを運はこぶ mean, and does it describe physical carrying?

Show answer

To make the effort to go somewhere. No physical carrying happens; the verb 運はこぶ is used figuratively, as if you "carried your feet" there on purpose.

8. You see a sign that says 飲食物いんしょくぶつの持ち込もちこみ禁止きんし. What does it mean?

Show answer

"Bringing in food and drink is prohibited." 持ち込もちこみ is the noun for taking something into a place, and 禁止きんし means banned.

9. A shop clerk asks about your points card politely. What do they say?

Show answer

ポイントカードはお持もちですか — お持もちです is the honorific form of 持もっています, used for the customer's action.

10. Why is 責任せきにんを運はこぶ unnatural for "carry responsibility"?

Show answer

責任せきにんを背負せおう is the natural verb. A burden you take on rides on your back, so 背負せおう is used. 運はこぶ would suggest moving the responsibility from one place to another.

FAQ

Is 運はこぶ the same as "carry" in English? Only partly. 運はこぶ covers moving or transporting something to a place. For holding, having, or carrying around, you need 持もつ, 持ち歩もちあるく, 背負せおう, or 抱かかえる.

What is the difference between 持もつ and 持もっている? 持もつ is the action of picking something up or holding it. 持もっている is the state of having or owning it. 車くるまを持もっている means "I own a car."

What does 持ち運もちはこび mean? 持ち運もちはこび is a noun for carrying something from place to place. You mostly see it in 持ち運もちはこびできる or 持ち運もちはこびに便利べんり, meaning "portable" or "easy to carry around."

How do I say "carry-on bag" in Japanese? 機内きない持ち込もちこみ手荷物てにもつ, or just 機内きない持ち込もちこみ. At the airport you will hear 機内きない持ち込もちこみは一ひとつまでです ("carry-on is limited to one").

Can I say 荷物にもつを持もちましょうか to offer help? Yes. 持もちましょうか means "shall I carry it?" and is a polite offer. In a hotel or shop, staff say お持もちしましょうか, which is the humble version.

Is there a verb for "carry" in the sense of "sell" or "stock"? Yes. 扱あつかう or 置おいている is used, as in 「この店みせは日本にほんのお菓子かしを扱あつかっている」, "This store carries Japanese sweets." Neither 運はこぶ nor 持もつ is used.

Vocabulary from this article

Tap the block to select all of it, then copy. In Anki: File → Import, note type Basic, separator Tab, and each line becomes one card.

運ぶ	はこぶ — to carry, to transport
持つ	もつ — to hold, to have
持っている	もっている — to have, to own
持ち歩く	もちあるく — to carry around
背負う	せおう — to carry on the back, to bear a burden
抱える	かかえる — to hold in the arms, to have a problem
荷物	にもつ — luggage, baggage
足を運ぶ	あしをはこぶ — to make the effort to go
持ち込み	もちこみ — bringing in
機内持ち込み	きないもちこみ — carry-on
禁止	きんし — prohibition
お持ちですか	おもちですか — do you have (honorific)
持ち運び	もちはこび — portability
責任	せきにん — responsibility
扱う	あつかう — to handle, to stock

I'm Yuuki, a Japanese teacher based in Tokyo. I've taught on italki as a Top 1% teacher and watched over 1,500 anime, so most of the example sentences on this blog come from lines I've actually heard students ask about — including this one, since "carry" is a word nearly every English speaker tries to translate one-to-one. For practice with feedback, Book a trial lesson · $13, or work through Japanese practice exercises first.

Sources: the author's own lessons and standard reference grammars.

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