whitecaps; white-crested waves
Refers to waves with white foam on their crests, often seen on the sea or large bodies of water.
Whitecaps are forming on the sea because of the strong wind.
Archaic or literary term for a thief, often used in historical contexts or set phrases. In modern Japanese, 泥棒 is more common.
A thief sneaked into the merchant's house.
Standard kanji spelling for both senses.
Variant kanji spelling; 浪 is an older form of 波. Rare in modern usage.
The wave sense is the native compound 白波 “white-crested wave.” The thief sense reflects 白浪, an allusion to the Chinese 白波賊 bandits, with 白波 used as an alternative spelling.