What does 笑い mean?
笑い is a Japanese adjective meaning “laugh, laughter, smile” in English. It can also be translated as “smile, sneer, sex aids (e.g. dildos, pornographic books, erotic woodblock prints, etc.)” depending on context. It is written as 笑い in kanji, わらい in hiragana, and warai in romaji. This word is part of JLPT N3 vocabulary.
Example sentences
赤ん坊は敵意のある笑いができるほど年をとってはいない。
The baby is not old enough to be capable of hostile laughter.
日本文化の文脈の中では当然と思われる微笑みも、外国人の間では、不気味な笑いとして多くの混乱を生み、また悪評が高い。
Our smile, which is understandable in the context of Japanese culture, sometimes causes a lot of confusion and is notorious among foreign people as a mysterious smile.
ぎこちない笑いをした店員が答えた。
The smirking male clerk replied.