寒いです
samui desu
To say "I am cold" in Japanese, you use 寒いです (samui desu).
A statement used to say that the air or environment feels cold.
Which one should you use?
Use 寒いです for ambient temperature (the weather/air), but use 冷たい (tsumetai) for the temperature of an object or a person's touch (like cold water or cold hands).
How does it change in a sentence?
Dropping the です (desu) makes the phrase 寒い (samui), which is the casual form used with friends or family.
How do you pronounce it?
samui desu
What mistakes should you avoid?
While grammatically correct, English speakers often over-use the word "I" (私は / watashi wa) in Japanese. It is more natural to simply say 寒いです (samui desu) if the context makes it clear you are talking about yourself.
Did you know?
- The word 寒い (samui) can also be used metaphorically in Japanese to describe a story or a joke that is 'cold' or lacks humor, similar to the English slang 'dry' or 'lame'.
- To express that you are shivering from the cold, Japanese speakers often use the onomatopoeia ぶるぶる (buru buru) before saying 寒い.
- When someone says 寒い, a common cultural response is to suggest こたつ (kotatsu), a traditional low table with a built-in heater and a heavy blanket.
Examples in context
- 寒いです。Samui desu.I am cold.
- 今日はとても寒いです。Kyō wa totemo samui desu.It is very cold today.
Example conversation
Ren and Misaki are walking outside in the evening.
- 蓮 Ren外は寒いです。Soto wa samui desu.It is cold outside.
- 美咲 Misakiはい、とても寒いです。Hai, totemo samui desu.Yes, it is very cold.
- 蓮 Ren早く家に入りましょう。Hayaku ie ni hairimashō.Let's get inside the house quickly.
- 美咲 Misakiそうしましょう。Sō shimashō.Let's do that.
