by Tomoyuki Higuchi
How do you say “I caught a cold.” in Japanese?
Today’s phrase is :
I caught a cold.
風邪ひいた。
kaze hiita*
*We pronounce “hiita” like “hīta”.
If you want to speak politely, you can say :
風邪ひきました。
kaze hikimashita
- I = わたしは watashiwa
- cold = 風邪 kaze
- catch a cold = 風邪をひく kazeo hiku
- caught a cold = 風邪をひいた kazeo hiita
We do not usually say “わたしは watashiwa (= I)” in everyday conversation.
わたしは 風邪ひいたI caught a cold