Key Facts
- Hangul: 차갑다 (chagapda)
- Meaning: cold (to touch)
- Level: A1
- Part of speech: adjective
- Stem: 차갑
- Conjugation class: ㅂ-irregular
- Grammar: Takes 이/가 for the cold thing.
- Usage: ㅂ-irregular: 차가워요. Also describes personality, as in 차가운 사람 (a cold person).
What Does 차갑다 Mean?
차갑다 describes low temperature of things: 차가운 물, 차가운 음료수. The cold thing takes 이/가, as in 이 물은 너무 차가워요.
It also describes personality, as in 차가운 사람, a cold person. For a cold day, the everyday word is 춥다.
Senses:
- cold (to the touch): Describes low temperature of objects, drinks or hands, e.g. 차가운 물.
How Do You Pronounce 차갑다?
차갑다 comes out as [차갑따]: nothing is lost, but the ㄷ of 다 becomes tense after the ㅂ. The same holds for 차갑습니다 [차갑씀니다] and 차갑겠어요 [차갑께써요]. After the ㅂ turns into 우/워, the past 차가웠어요 is [차가워써요].
How Do You Use 차갑다 in a Sentence?
이 물은 너무 차가워요.
This water is too cold.
이 물은 너무 차가워요 uses 너무 for 'too' and shows 차가워요, with ㅂ turned into 워.
차가운 음료수를 마셔요.
I drink a cold beverage.
차가운 음료수를 마셔요 uses the modifier 차가운 before 음료수.
손이 차가워서 장갑을 꼈어요.
My hands were cold, so I wore gloves.
손이 차가워서 장갑을 꼈어요 gives the cause with 차가워서 and then the action taken.
How Does Chagapda Conjugation Work?
차갑다 is a ㅂ-irregular adjective. Before a vowel ending, the ㅂ turns into 우 and 우 + 어 merges to 워: 차가워요, 차가웠어요, 차가워서. The 으 endings give 차가우세요, 차가우면 and 차가운. Consonant endings keep the ㅂ: 차갑습니다, 차갑지, 차갑겠어요.
차갑다
| Form | Korean | Romanization | Rule |
|---|---|---|---|
| Polite present | 차가워요 | ||
| Polite past | 차가웠어요 | ||
| Polite future (plan) | 차가울 거예요 | ||
| Polite future (intention or guess) | 차갑겠어요 | ||
| Formal present | 차갑습니다 | ||
| Formal past | 차가웠습니다 | ||
| Formal future | 차가울 것입니다 | ||
| Casual present | 차가워 | ||
| Casual past | 차가웠어 | ||
| Casual future | 차가울 거야 | ||
| Honorific polite | 차가우세요 | ||
| Because / and then | 차가워서 | ||
| If (conditional) | 차가우면 | ||
| Present modifier (before a noun) | 차가운 | ||
| Past modifier (before a noun) | 차가웠던 | ||
| Future modifier (before a noun) | 차가울 | ||
| Negative with 안 (short) | 안 차가워요 | ||
| Negative (long form) | 차갑지 않아요 |
For a word meaning 'cold to the touch', -고 싶다 has no cell, because that ending attaches to action verbs.
Sound Changes
| Form | Korean | Sounds like |
|---|---|---|
| Polite past | 차가웠어요 | [차가워써요] |
| Polite future | 차가울 거예요 | [차가울꺼예요] |
| Polite future guess | 차갑겠어요 | [차갑께써요] |
| Formal present | 차갑습니다 | [차갑씀니다] |
| Formal past | 차가웠습니다 | [차가웓씀니다] |
| Formal future | 차가울 것입니다 | [차가울꺼심니다] |
| Casual past | 차가웠어 | [차가워써] |
| Past modifier | 차가웠던 | [차가웓떤] |
| Long negative | 차갑지 않아요 | [차갑찌 아나요] |
Common Mistake
Wrong: ✗ 차갑어요
Correct: ✓ 차가워요
Why: 차갑다 is a ㅂ-irregular: ㅂ becomes 워 before an 어 ending, so 차가워요. The formal 차갑습니다 keeps ㅂ. For the weather itself, 춥다 is the usual word.
Where Does 차갑다 Turn up in Daily Talk?
Use it for a drink from the fridge, for hands in winter or for a personality. 시원하다 is the pleasant, refreshing kind of cold, while 차갑다 is just cold and often unpleasantly so. 뜨겁다 is the opposite for objects.
What Is Easy to Confuse with 차갑다?
| Word | How to tell it from 차갑다 |
|---|---|
| 춥다 | 춥다 is for cold weather or feeling cold; 차갑다 is for cold objects. |
| 시원하다 | 시원하다 is pleasantly cool, while 차갑다 is just cold, often unpleasantly. |
Checking Water before Drinking
Two friends are taking a break after a walk. One offers a bottle from the fridge, and the other checks the temperature.
Jisu
물이 너무 차가워요?
Muri neomu chagawoyo?
Is the water too cold?
Minho
네. 아까 마신 물도 차가웠어요.
Ne. Akka masin muldo chagawosseoyo.
Yes. The water I drank earlier was cold too.
Jisu
차가운 물 말고 다른 물을 줄게요.
Chagaun mul malgo dareun mureul julgeyo.
I will give you different water instead of the cold water.
차가워요 asks about the water now, and 차가웠어요 describes the earlier drink. 차가운 modifies 물 in the final line. The scene concerns a drink's temperature. Neither friend needs to be feeling cold all over, so 춥다 would answer a different question.
Collocations for Temperature and Emotional Distance
차가운 물 means “cold water”. Unlike the English phrase “a cold”, this does not name an illness. The adjective describes the temperature of the water. The same modifier fits drinks, hands and surfaces that feel cold on contact.
손이 차갑다 means “to have cold hands”, literally “the hands are cold”. 손 is the subject of the description. English often makes the owner the subject, but Korean can describe the body part directly and leave its owner understood from context.
차가운 시선 literally means “a cold gaze”. The usual meaning is a distant, disapproving or unwelcoming look. There is no literal temperature measurement. A drama scene may use the phrase when a character responds without warmth or sympathy.
차갑게 말하다 means “to speak coldly”. 차갑게 describes the manner of speaking, while 차가운 needs a noun after it. The word can suggest emotional distance without saying that the speaker is angry or shouting.
Where Will You Meet 차갑다?
At home, 차갑다 comes up around water from the fridge, cold leftovers and hands after being outside. Recipes or serving instructions may describe a dish as cold. Menus also use names for specific cold dishes, so a cold item does not have to contain this adjective in its name.
In dramas and fiction, context often turns physical coldness into emotional distance. 차가운 사람 normally describes someone who seems distant. If the scene is about touching a person's hand, however, a cold body part has its literal meaning. Look at the noun being described before choosing a translation.
차갑다 can describe cold air or wind against the skin. 춥다 remains the usual choice for saying that the day is cold or that you feel cold. This distinction helps with a common English transfer: “I am cold” does not normally mean “my body feels cold to another person's touch”.
What Makes the ㅂ Forms Tricky?
차가워요 and 차가운 belong together, but their endings produce different vowels. Before 어요, 우 combines with 어 to give 워. In the modifier 차가운, 우 remains visible. Use the noun phrase 차가운 물 as a memory anchor for that second shape.
Before a consonant ending, keep ㅂ: 차갑습니다 and 차갑지 않아요. The tense sound in the pronunciation of 차갑습니다 is a sound rule, while changing 차갑 to 차가우 is a conjugation change. Keeping those processes separate helps you preserve the correct written stem.
Cold does not automatically mean unpleasant. A cold drink can be welcome after exercise. 시원하다 adds the idea of refreshing relief more directly, while 차갑다 states coldness. Too much coldness comes from wording such as 너무 차가워요 or from the situation.
| Related word | Meaning | Useful distinction |
|---|---|---|
| 뜨겁다 | hot to the touch | The temperature opposite for drinks and objects. |
| 춥다 | cold; feeling cold | Useful for weather and the body's overall sensation. |
| 시원하다 | cool; refreshing | Highlights pleasant relief from heat. |
| 미지근하다 | lukewarm | Describes a temperature between hot and cold. |
The weather vocabulary lesson helps you move from a cold object to descriptions of the day, the wind and how you feel outside.
Mini Drill
- Describe cold water before a noun: ____ 물.
- Say “was cold” politely about an earlier drink.
- Make the long negative for water that is not cold.
- Give the conditional “if it is cold”.
Show drill answers
- 차가운 물.
- 차가웠어요.
- 차갑지 않아요.
- 차가우면.
Quick Self-Test
- Which adjective usually fits “I feel cold” outside?
- Does 차가운 시선 refer to a literal temperature?
- Can 차갑다 describe a drink someone enjoys?
Show answers
- 춥다.
- No. It describes a cold or unwelcoming gaze.
- Yes. It states coldness; enjoyment depends on context.
Frequently Asked Questions
How Do I Say "This Water Is Cold"?
이 물은 너무 차가워요.
Can I Say 차가워요 for Cold Weather?
For an ordinary cold day, use 춥다. 차갑다 is mainly for objects, drinks and hands; it reaches the weather mostly when a wind or the air feels cold against the skin.
Can 차갑다 Describe a Person?
Yes. 차가운 사람 means a cold, distant person.
When Should I Choose 시원하다 over 차갑다?
시원하다 is pleasantly cool and refreshing. 차갑다 is just cold, often unpleasantly.
Which Words Are Related to 차갑다?
The entries closest to 차갑다 (cold to the touch) are 뜨겁다 (hot to the touch), 춥다 (cold, of weather), 시원하다 (cool/refreshing), 덥다 (hot, of weather).
What Should You Learn Next?
뜨겁다 is the opposite, 춥다 covers the weather, and 시원하다 is the pleasant kind of cool. To see why 'cold to the touch' takes the form 차가워요, read ㅂ-irregular verbs and adjectives; the Korean verb conjugator tests other stems, and the Korean verb dictionary lists the rest of the family.