煙(けむ)い

けむい

i-adjective

smoky

See also: 煙(けむ)たい (variant; also figurative)

Conjugation

	Affirmative	Negative
Present	煙(けむ)い	煙(けむ)くない
Past	煙(けむ)かった	煙(けむ)くなかった
て form	煙(けむ)くて	煙(けむ)くなくて
Adverbial	煙(けむ)く	—
Conditional ば	煙(けむ)ければ	煙(けむ)くなければ
Conditional たら	煙(けむ)かったら	煙(けむ)くなかったら

1. smoky; filled with smoke

Describing an atmosphere or environment with a lot of smoke.

この部屋(へや)は煙(けむ)い。

This room is smoky.

煙(けむ)くて息(いき)ができない。

It's so smoky I can't breathe.

Te-form connecting to consequence

バーベキューの煙(けむり)が流(なが)れてきて煙(けむ)い。

Smoke from the barbecue drifted over and it's smoky.

2. irritating to the eyes (from smoke)

The sensation when smoke causes discomfort to the eyes.

たき火(び)の煙(けむり)で目(め)が煙(けむ)い。

My eyes are irritated by the smoke from the bonfire.

煙(けむ)くて涙(なみだ)が出(で)てきた。

It was so smoky that tears started coming.

隣(となり)の人(ひと)のタバコの煙(けむり)が煙(けむ)くてたまらない。

The cigarette smoke from the person next to me is unbearably irritating.

煙(けむ)い describes a state where smoke fills the air, causing discomfort to the eyes and throat. It refers to the physical sensation, not the visual appearance.

FORMS:

Adverbial: 煙(けむ)く
Noun form: 煙(けむ)さ (smokiness)

RELATED WORDS:

煙(けむり): smoke (noun)
煙(けむ)たい: variant adjective with the same meaning; also used figuratively to mean "unapproachable" or "hard to be around"
煙(けむ)たがる: to find someone bothersome or intimidating (figurative extension)

FIGURATIVE USE:
煙(けむ)たい (but not 煙(けむ)い) can describe a person who is strict or intimidating, making others uncomfortable — as if their presence irritates like smoke. Example: あの上司(じょうし)は煙(けむ)たい存在(そんざい)だ (That boss is an uncomfortable presence).

Related Words

Related: 煙(けむり) (smoke (noun))

general

Added 2026.1.13 16:20 · Revised 2026.5.28 23:39

03500/03941_kemui