肌触り（はだざわり、hadazawari）
- texture

The Japanese word 肌触り (はだざわり) means "texture," "feel," or "touch" of a surface, particularly when referring to how something feels against the skin. It describes the tactile sensation experienced when touching something. It can relate to the smoothness, roughness, softness, hardness, or overall quality of how something feels to the touch. The word emphasizes the sensory experience.

⚫︎ このセーターの肌触りはとても良いです。 Translation: This sweater's texture is very nice. ⚫︎ 赤ちゃんの肌はとても柔らかい肌触りです。 Translation: A baby's skin has a very soft feel. ⚫︎ ベルベットの肌触りは独特です。 Translation: The texture of velvet is unique.

⚫︎ 肌触り is used to describe the tactile qualities of various objects and materials. ⚫︎ You can use it to talk about how clothes feel, the texture of fabric, the surface of furniture, or even the feeling of your own skin. ⚫︎ When describing the feel of something, you could combine 肌触り with adjectives like 良い (good), 悪い (bad), 柔らかい (soft), 滑らか (smooth), ザラザラ (rough), etc. ⚫︎ It is appropriate in both formal and informal conversations.

⚫︎ The word is typically written in hiragana as はだざわり. ⚫︎ The kanji version is 肌触り ⚫︎ There are no significant variations in the okurigana.

⚫︎ 感触 (かんしょく) - "feel," "sensation" (more general, including other senses) ⚫︎ 手触り (てざわり) - "feel," "touch" (emphasizing the hand) ⚫︎ 質感 (しつかん) - "texture," "quality of material" (often used in the context of design and art)

There aren't direct antonyms in the same sense, but you could describe a negative tactile experience. ⚫︎ ごわごわした (gōgō shita) - rough, stiff ⚫︎ ざらざらした (zarazara shita) - rough, scratchy

このシルクの布は、肌触りがとても気持ちいいです。 ・Translation: This silk cloth feels very good against the skin. ・Explanation: This sentence describes the pleasant feeling of silk cloth, using the word 肌触り to emphasize the sensory experience.

新しいタオルは少し肌触りが固いけど、洗濯すると柔らかくなるよ。 ・Translation: The new towels feel a little stiff, but they will become soft after washing. ・Explanation: This sentence describes the initial rough feel of new towels, mentioning how the texture changes with washing.

The word is composed of: ⚫︎ 肌 (はだ) - "skin" ⚫︎ 触り (さわり) - "touch," "feeling" or the verb form of 触る (さわる - to touch). Thus, 肌触り literally means "skin touch" or "feeling against the skin." The meaning evolved to describe the texture or feel of a material against the skin.