引っ込む・引っこむ|ひっこむhikkomu[3]nakadaka (mid-high)

JLPT N2approx.Common
Which spelling to use
引っ込む引っ込む is the most common written form of this word and is the form beginners should normally use.
引っこむ引っこむ is a less common written variant of the same word; beginners should generally use 引っ込む instead.
Definitions
  1. godan verb, intransitive verbto draw back; to sink; to cave in
  2. godan verb, intransitive verbto be set back (e.g. from a road)
  3. godan verb, intransitive verbto withdraw (e.g. from the public eye); to retire to (somewhere); to stay indoors; to butt out; to stay out of it
    今いままでどこに引ひっこんでいたのですか。↗
    Where've you been keeping yourself?
Conjugation
Dictionary form引っ込む(ひっこむ)
Polite (masu)引っ込みます(ひっこみます)
Negative (nai)引っ込まない(ひっこまない)
polite (masen)引っ込みません(ひっこみません)
classical zu / nu引っ込まず・引っ込まぬ(ひっこまず・ひっこまぬ)
Past (ta)引っ込んだ(ひっこんだ)
polite (mashita)引っ込みました(ひっこみました)
Past negative (nakatta)引っ込まなかった(ひっこまなかった)
polite (masen deshita)引っ込みませんでした(ひっこみませんでした)
Te form引っ込んで(ひっこんで)
Potential引っ込める(ひっこめる)
Passive引っ込まれる(ひっこまれる)
Causative引っ込ませる(ひっこませる)
Causative passive引っ込ませられる・引っ込まされる(ひっこませられる・ひっこまされる)
Conditional (ba)引っ込めば(ひっこめば)
tara引っ込んだら(ひっこんだら)
Volitional引っ込もう(ひっこもう)
polite (mashou)引っ込みましょう(ひっこみましょう)
Imperative引っ込め(ひっこめ)

Common forms generated by rule; see the senses for honorific or irregular usage.

Transitive / intransitive pair
intransitive引っ込むひっこむ⇄transitive引っ込めるひっこめる
首くびが引っ込ひっこむ
引っ込む describes something retracting or withdrawing by itself (as in 首が引っ込む), while 引き込む describes an agent deliberately pulling something in (as in 首を引き込む).

Usage comparisons are AI-assisted and cross-checked by multiple models; for study reference only

Japanese definitions
  1. 突き出つきでた物ものが元もとの状態じょうたいに戻もどる。
  2. 奥おくに入はいった所ところに位置いちする。
  3. 中なかに入はいって目立めだたないようにする。
Kanji in this word
English equivalents
See also

JLPT vocabulary levels are community estimates, not official (no official lists have been published since the 2010 revision).

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