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こっそり Japanese meaning | Kotomora

こっそり

こ

っ

そ

り

Common wordJLPTN3Freq.FrequencyTop 5,000

Meanings

1

adverb, adverb taking the 'to' particle

stealthily; secretly; on the sly

onomatopoeic or mimetic word

Describes doing something quietly and secretly so as not to be noticed by others. Often used with verbs of movement, communication, or action.

彼かれはこっそり部屋へやを抜ぬけ出だした。
He slipped out of the room stealthily.

こっそり教おしえてあげるね。

I'll tell you secretly.

Written forms

こっそりUsage96%
Standard hiragana spelling; the most common written form.
コッソリUsage4%
Katakana variant used for emphasis or in informal writing.

Similar words

ひそかに
ひそかに also means 'secretly' but is more formal and often used in written or serious contexts, while こっそり is casual and emphasizes stealthy, sneaky action.
内ない緒しょで
内緒で means 'in confidence' or 'as a secret' and focuses on keeping information from others, whereas こっそり focuses on the manner of doing something without being seen.

Etymology

A mimetic word (onomatopoeia) derived from the sound-symbolic root こそ- (sneaky, stealthy) with the geminate っ and adverbial ending り. The exact historical derivation is uncertain.