따뜻하다
ttadeut-hada
/t͈a.t͈ɯ.tʰa.da/
Definition
Warm; having a pleasant, comfortable heat — used for weather, food, or feelings.
Example
오늘 날씨가 따뜻해서 밖에 나갔어요.
Show translation
The weather was warm today, so I went outside.
Etymology
Native Korean root 따뜻- (warm) combined with the adjectival suffix -하다. The root is onomatopoeically suggestive of gentle warmth and appears consistently in Old Korean texts. Related forms include 따듯하다 (a softer dialectal variant) and the adverb 따뜻이 (warmly).
Cultural note
In Korean, 따뜻하다 bridges the physical and emotional worlds effortlessly. A 따뜻한 사람 (warm person) is one who is kind and emotionally generous — a high compliment in Korean culture. It also frequently appears in food contexts: Koreans place great value on eating 따뜻한 밥 (warm rice/a warm meal), which carries connotations of care and home. The word is a staple in K-drama dialogue, often used to describe a love interest's personality.