怖い（こわい、kowai）
- scared

The Japanese word 怖い (こわい) primarily means "scary," "frightening," or "fearful." It describes the feeling of fear or being afraid of something. It can refer to physical threats, intangible things like ghosts, or even abstract concepts like the future. It's an adjective, so it describes a state of being. The word is used to express an emotion or feeling of 怖い.

⚫︎お化けは怖い Translation: Ghosts are scary. ⚫︎あの映画は本当に怖かった Translation: That movie was really scary. ⚫︎高いところは怖いです。 Translation: Heights are scary.

This word is used to describe something that causes fear or the feeling of being afraid. ⚫︎You can use it to describe external things that are 怖い. ⚫︎You can also use it to describe your internal feeling of being afraid. ⚫︎It can be used in various contexts, from describing a scary movie to expressing a fear of a situation or event. ⚫︎It's common in everyday conversation. For example, you can say 怖い when you encounter something that frightens you. You can also say something 怖くない, which would mean "not scary."

The word is typically written: ⚫︎In hiragana: こわい ⚫︎In kanji: 怖い ⚫︎There are no other common ways to write this word. The okurigana (送りがな), the hiragana characters that follow the kanji, is always い.

⚫︎恐ろしい (おそろしい): Dreadful, terrible, frightening. It generally conveys a stronger sense of fear than 怖い. ⚫︎ぞっとする (ぞっとする): To be horrified or to shudder. Often used when talking about something that is disgusting or gives you the creeps. ⚫︎不安 (ふあん): Anxious, uneasy. This describes a state of worry or unease, but it's not exactly the same as being 怖い. It often deals with future events. ⚫︎びびる (bibiru): To be scared (slang). A more informal way of saying "to be scared". ⚫︎怯える (おびえる): To be frightened, to be scared, to be terrified.

⚫︎安心 (あんしん): Relief, peace of mind. This is the opposite of being 怖い. It means feeling safe and secure. ⚫︎平気 (へいき): Calm, cool, indifferent. It implies not being 怖い or not being bothered by something.

暗い道は怖いから、一人では歩きたくない。 ・Translation: Because dark roads are scary, I don't want to walk alone. ・Explanation: This sentence uses 怖い to describe the feeling of being afraid of a dark road.

あの犬は怖い顔をしている。 ・Translation: That dog has a scary face. ・Explanation: This sentence uses 怖い to describe the appearance of a dog.

The etymology of 怖い is not definitively known, but it is believed to be derived from the verb 凍える (こごえる), meaning "to get cold" or "to be chilled." This suggests that the initial meaning of 怖い was related to a feeling of being chilled or shuddering, which then evolved to encompass the broader concept of fear and 怖い.