kiesaħ

Probably from Arabic ⁧قَاسِح⁩ (qāsiḥ, “hard”), in closely related Tunisian Arabic also ⁧كاسح⁩ (kāsiḥ). This adjective is used in Morocco in the collocation ⁧برد قاسح⁩ (bard qāsiḥ, “severe cold”). The sense “cold” could also derive from “hard” → “frozen” → “cold”, but this may be less likely given the extreme rarity of frost in the Maltese islands (as of 2019 unrecorded with standard instruments, the official record low being 1.4 °C). Alternatively, the Maltese adjective might be from Arabic ⁧كاسِح⁩ (kāsiḥ, “blustering”), referring to cold winter winds.

• IPA^(key): /ˈkɪː.saħ/

kiesaħ (feminine singular kiesħa, plural kiesħa or kesħin)

1. cold

   Antonym: sħun

   Coordinate terms: biered, diefi

2. affectatious
3. impudent