lái
  1. to come
  2. (used as a substitute for a more specific verb)
  3. hither (directional complement for motion toward the speaker, as in 回來 huílai)
  4. ever since (as in 自古以來 lái)
  5. for the past (amount of time)
  6. (prefix) the coming ...; the next ... (as in 來世 láishì)
  7. (between two verbs) in order to
  8. (after a round number) approximately
  9. (used after to indicate possibility, as in 談得來 tándelái, or after to indicate impossibility, as in 吃不來 chībulái)

CEDICT