咳（せき、seki）
- cough

The Japanese word 咳 (せき, seki) means "cough." It refers to the forceful expulsion of air from the lungs, often accompanied by a distinct sound, to clear the airways. It is a common symptom of various respiratory illnesses and irritations. The act of 咳ing can be voluntary or involuntary, and it serves as a protective reflex to remove irritants like mucus, dust, or foreign particles.

⚫︎風邪で、ひどい咳が出ます。 Translation: I have a bad cough because of a cold. ⚫︎タバコの煙で咳が出てしまいました。 Translation: I coughed because of the cigarette smoke. ⚫︎彼は突然咳をし始めました。 Translation: He suddenly started to cough.

⚫︎ You can use 咳 in various contexts to describe the act of coughing or the presence of a cough. ⚫︎ It is appropriate to use in conversations about health, symptoms, or the environment. ⚫︎ You can use it when talking about your own health or someone else's. ⚫︎ When you hear someone 咳, you can offer them a tissue or ask if they are feeling alright.

⚫︎ The standard way to write 咳 is with the kanji 咳. ⚫︎ The hiragana reading is せき. ⚫︎ There are no common variations in the okurigana.

⚫︎ There are no direct synonyms for the word 咳 itself, which simply means "cough." ⚫︎ However, you might use phrases to describe different types of coughing or situations involving coughing. For example, you could say: ⚫︎ ゴホゴホ (gohogohi) - represents the sound of a cough. ⚫︎ 空咳 (からせき, karaseki) - dry cough.

⚫︎ There is no direct antonym for 咳. ⚫︎ The absence of coughing would be the opposite, but there isn't a specific single word for that.

昨夜から咳が止まらないんです。 ・Translation: I can't stop coughing since last night. ・Explanation: This sentence describes someone who is experiencing a continuous cough.

医者に咳止めをもらいました。 ・Translation: I got cough medicine from the doctor. ・Explanation: This sentence describes someone who has received medicine to suppress or alleviate a cough.

The kanji 咳 is a phonetic ideogram, combining the radical 口 (kuchi, "mouth") with the phonetic component 亥 (i). The 亥 component historically represented the sound of a cough. This structure reflects that coughing is associated with the mouth and the sound it produces.