冷ます

1. Origins, structure, and basic meaning

• Structure: 冷ます (さます) is a transitive verb in which an agent lowers heat or emotional excitement.
• Basic usage: スープを冷まして lowers the soup’s temperature before drinking, while 興奮を冷ました describes a completed calming of emotional excitement with fresh air.

2. Common pitfalls and similar expressions

• Physical temperature and emotional intensity
  • In both スープを冷ます and 興奮を冷ます, を marks the affected object. Neither construction says that the object cooled or calmed on its own.