夏

Pattern visualization

Examples

1. 日本の夏は本当に暑いです。▶ —
   Japanese summer is really hot.
2. 夏休みは海に行きます。▶ —
   I go to the sea during summer break.

Collocations

Mnemonic

なつ — 夏, Yamato. Japanese summer — one notch stickier than the Korean August in heat and humidity. 夏休み natsu-yasumi (summer break) runs late July to late August. Schools send students off with homework attached, including 自由研究 (free-research projects). The seasonal cluster is rich ── 夏祭り natsu-matsuri (summer festivals), 花火大会 hanabi-taikai (fireworks displays), お盆 obon (mid-August ancestral observance). In haiku, summer 季語 kigo (season words) are the largest reservoir of all four seasons. The kanji 夏 depicts a figure with a large head and feet — a trace of the old Chinese view of summer as 'the season of the great person'. The Korean reading ha is sister to the onyomi か ── 夏季 kaki (summer season).

Quick check

1. Mid-August ancestral observance in Japanese summer?

   • Obon — mid-August
   • Hanami — spring
   • Tanabata — July 7
   • Shougatsu — New Year