寒 - It's Freezing COLD, Build a Shelter

Readings & Meanings:

カン

寒い

cold

Common Usage:

寒い

防寒

Examples:

寒い日には厚着をする。

冬の防寒対策は万全だ。

Translations:

On cold days, wear thick clothing.

Our winter countermeasures against cold are flawless.

Radical:

U-kammuri, the U-crown, 宀 is the top radical.

The grid just below the roof is from a pictograph of four bricks stacked together. Down below, the two legs to either side are actually hands, building up a shelter. To emphasize that the shelter was to protect from the cold, eventually 冫 was added. 冫 is the ni-sui form of 氷, ice.

References:

http://www.kanjinetworks.com/indices/radindex.html
http://www.thejapanesepage.com/node/kanji/7.htm