悲しい

⟨kanasi₁ki₁⟩ → /kanasiki/ → /kanaɕiː/

From Old Japanese 悲し (kanasi, “emotionally overwhelming: dear, beloved, sad”), ultimately from Proto-Japonic *kanasi (“beloved, dear”). Attested once in the Nihon Shoki of 720, and amply in the Man'yōshū, completed in 759.^[1][2]

Originally meant "dear, beloved, lovely", in addition to "sad". The former senses were later taken over by other adjectives such as 愛らしい (airashii) and 可愛い (kawaii). See also the Ryukyuan cognates such as Miyako 悲す (kanasï) and Okinawan 愛さん (kanasan, “beloved, lovely, cute”), which do not mean "sad".

Considering the original sense of "emotionally overwhelming", might be cognate with 兼ねる (kaneru, “to group together; to be concerned about something”), from the semantic overlap with worrying.

• (Tokyo) かなしい (Heiban – )^[3]
• (Tokyo) かなしい (Nakadaka – )^[3]
• IPA^(key):

悲(かな)しい • (kanashii) -i (adverbial 悲(かな)しく (kanashiku))

1. sad, sorrowful

• 悲(かな)しむ (kanashimu, “feel sorrow”)

• 悲しい／哀しい／かなしい - Gogen Yurai Jiten (in Japanese)