告る (kokuru)

What it means

1. 1.

   To confess your feelings and formally ask someone out. In Japan this is a discrete event with a yes-or-no answer, not a gradual drift into dating.

   The structural point learners miss: without a 告白, two people who go out repeatedly are still not considered to be a couple.

Examples with translations

• 明日、告るつもり。

  I'm going to tell her how I feel tomorrow.

• 告ったけど振られた。

  I put myself out there and got turned down.

Where it comes from

告白 ('confession') clipped to 告 and given the -る verb ending, the same pattern as サボる and ググる.

Other forms

Romanised as:

kokuru