How to say “cold” in Japanese
3 phrases · Tourist, Learner, and Local levels · with pronunciation
寒いです。
🔊 Samui desu
Literally: “It is cold.”
💡 Simple
今日は凍えそうなくらい寒いですね。
🔊 Kyō wa kōesō na kurai samui desu ne
Literally: “Today it's so cold it seems like we'll freeze.”
💡 凍えそう = seems like freezing
身を切るような寒さで、外に出るのが辛いですね。
🔊 Mi wo kiru yōna samusa de, soto ni deru no ga tsurai desu ne
Literally: “Such body-cutting cold, it's painful to go outside.”
💡 身を切るような = body-cutting cold, vivid idiom; 辛い = painful/hard
About these Japanese phrases
These Japanese weather phrases cover three levels of fluency for expressing cold conditions. The Tourist phrase is what any beginner can use immediately. The Learner phrase sounds natural in everyday conversation. The Local phrase uses authentic idioms and expressions that native speakers actually use — the kind of phrase that makes locals smile when they hear a foreigner use it.
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