enter · put in

1. Origins, structure, and basic meaning

• Structure: No on reading is listed, and the kun readings are こむ and こめる. It has 5 strokes and relates to entering, crowding, or putting something in.
• Basic usage: 込む is read こむ, and 込める is read こめる.

2. Common pitfalls and similar expressions

• 込む / 込める
  • 込む means be crowded or be congested and is read こむ. It describes a road or station becoming crowded with cars or people.
  • この道は夕方になると車で込む。 means “This road becomes congested with cars in the evening.”
  • 込める means put into or fill and is read こめる. It describes putting a feeling into a gift or loading a bullet into a gun.
  • 劇では兵士が古い銃に弾を込める場面が描かれた。 means “The play includes a scene in which a soldier loads an old gun.”