寒い

Japanese

From Early Middle Japanese adjective 寒(さむ)し (samushi), with the 終(しゅう)止(し)形(けい) (shūshikei, “predicative form”) ending in し (shi) first replaced with the 連(れん)体(たい)形(けい) (rentaikei, “attributive form”) ending in き (ki), and then with the medial /-k-/ falling out to result in an ending of い (i).

Starting in at least the Muromachi period, this term became sporadically pronounced with a medial /b/ as 寒(さぶ)し (sabushi)^[1] (not to be confused with 寂(さぶ)し (sabushi), original form of 寂(さび)しい (sabishii)). Compare the similar /m/~/b/ alternation seen in 寂しい (sabishii, samishii, “lonely, desolate”), 頭 (tsuburi, tsumuri, “head”), and 煙 (keburi, kemuri, “smoke”). Related to 冷(さ)む (samu, “to cool down”), modern 冷(さ)める (sameru).^[2]

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Plain	寒い	さむい	`[sàmúꜜì]`
Conjunctive	寒くて	さむくてさむくて	`[sàmúꜜkùtè]` `[sáꜜmùkùtè]`
Continuative	寒く	さむくさむく	`[sàmúꜜkù]` `[sáꜜmùkù]`
Negative	寒くない	さむく・ないさむく・ない	`[sàmúꜜkù náꜜì]` `[sáꜜmùkù náꜜì]`
Past	寒かった	さむかったさむかった	`[sàmúꜜkàttà]` `[sáꜜmùkàttà]`
Negative past	寒くなかった	さむく・なかったさむく・なかった	`[sàmúꜜkù náꜜkàttà]` `[sáꜜmùkù náꜜkàttà]`
Conditional	寒ければ	さむければさむければ	`[sàmúꜜkèrèbà]` `[sáꜜmùkèrèbà]`
Terminal	寒い	さむい	`[sàmúꜜì]`
Formal	寒いです	さむいです	`[sàmúꜜì dèsù]`

寒(さむ)い • (samui) -i (adverbial 寒(さむ)く (samuku))

cold (ambient temperature, as a winter day is cold)
今日(きょう)は寒(さむ)い。
Kyō wa samui.
It is cold today.
(figuratively) fearful
背筋(せすじ)が寒(さむ)くなる
sesuji ga samuku naru
a chill runs down one's spine
(of a joke) terrible; not funny

Classical conjugation of "寒し" (ク活用, see Appendix:Japanese verbs.)
Stem forms
Irrealis (未然形)	寒く^[1] 寒から^[2]	さむくさむから	samuku samukara
Continuative (連用形)	寒く^[1] 寒かり^[2]	さむくさむかり	samuku samukari
Terminal (終止形)	寒し	さむし	samusi
Attributive (連体形)	寒き寒かる	さむきさむかる	samuki samukaru
Realis (已然形)	寒けれ	さむけれ	samukere
Imperative (命令形)	寒かれ	さむかれ	samukare
Key constructions
Negative	寒からず	さむからず	samukarazu
Contrasting conjunction	寒けれど	さむけれど	samukeredo
Causal conjunction	寒ければ	さむければ	samukereba
Conditional conjunction	寒くば	さむくば	samukuba
Past tense (firsthand knowledge)	寒かりき	さむかりき	samukariki
Past tense (secondhand knowledge)	寒かりけり	さむかりけり	samukarikeri
Adverbial	寒く	さむく	samuku

^[1]Without auxiliary verb.
^[2]With auxiliary verb.

^ “寒い”, in 日本国語大辞典 [Nihon Kokugo Daijiten]‎^[1] (in Japanese), concise edition, Tokyo: Shogakukan, 2006
^ Shinmura, Izuru, editor (2018), 広辞苑 [Kōjien] (in Japanese), Seventh edition, Tokyo: Iwanami Shoten
^ Matsumura, Akira, editor (2006), 大辞林 [Daijirin] (in Japanese), Third edition, Tokyo: Sanseidō, →ISBN

“寒い”, in 漢字ぺディア [Kanjipedia]‎^[2] (in Japanese), The Japan Kanji Aptitude Testing Foundation, 2015–2026