わいわい

〈人ひと〉とワイワイ騒さわぐto make lively noise together with someone
友とも達だちとワイワイ騒さわぎながらバーベキューをした。
We had a barbecue, laughing and making a lively racket with friends.
ワイワイ言いうto keep complaining or fussing noisily about something
みんなが料りょう理りの味あじについてワイワイ言いっている。
Everyone kept nagging on and on about the taste of the food.
ワイワイ泣なくto cry loudly and uncontrollably
子こ供どもは転ころんでワイワイ泣なき出だした。
The child fell down and started bawling loudly.
〈人ひと〉とワイワイやるto hang out and have lively fun with someone
休やすみの日ひは仲なか間まとワイワイやるのが好すきだ。
On my days off, I like hanging out and having lively fun with my friends.

Related words

がやがやN1sense 1
がやがや emphasizes indistinct crowd murmur or background hubbub, while わいわい suggests lively, cheerful group noise with a sense of fun.
わあわあ sense 3
わあわあ is the more common choice for loud crying or shouting by one person, while わいわい typically implies a group making noise together.
どやどやN1
わいわい describes lively, noisy chatter or excitement among people, while どやどや describes the noisy sound of many footsteps as a group moves or enters.

Opposites

ひっそりN2sense 1
ひっそり describes quiet stillness with no noise, the opposite of the lively clamor expressed by わいわい.

Written forms

わいわいUsage48%
Hiragana spelling; no kanji form is given; this reading has high priority.
ワイワイUsage52%
Katakana spelling is also attested and is practical for sound-symbolic or visually emphatic writing.

Etymology

A reduplicated Japanese sound-symbolic expression. The exact historical derivation is uncertain; the repeated form evokes noisy voices, clamor, or loud crying.