いらっしゃる

いらっしゃる is the honorific verb for "be", "go" and "come": it replaces いる, いく行く and くる来る when the subject is someone you show respect to – a teacher, a boss, a customer, the person you are talking to. Context tells you which of the three it means.

The polite form is いらっしゃいます, not いらっしゃります. The other forms are regular: いらっしゃらない, いらっしゃった, いらっしゃって.

• × いらっしゃります → いらっしゃいます

Never about yourself

いらっしゃる raises the person who is there, goes or comes, so it is never used for yourself or your own side. For your own being, going and coming, use the humble おります and まいります参ります.

• × 私は明日そちらにいらっしゃいます → 私は明日そちらに参ります

Usage notes

These go beyond "be", "go" and "come".

ていらっしゃる

After a て-form, いらっしゃる is the honorific of きごう〜ている, with the same meanings: an action in progress, or a state that resulted from one.

でいらっしゃる

After a noun and で, it is the honorific of です when the noun describes the person.

いらっしゃい and いらっしゃいませ

The command form いらっしゃい is a welcome: "come in", said at home or in a small shop. いらっしゃいませ is the polite version that staff say to every customer.