ざわざわ

ざわざわ
adverb, suru verb
rustling; murmuring; uneasy feeling
自動詞 intransitiveonomatopoeia
Conjugation
AffirmativeNegative
Presentざわざわするざわざわしない
Present politeざわざわしますざわざわしません
Pastざわざわしたざわざわしなかった
Past politeざわざわしましたざわざわしませんでした
て formざわざわしてざわざわしなくて
ている presentざわざわしているざわざわしていない
ている politeざわざわしていますざわざわしていません
ている pastざわざわしていたざわざわしていなかった
ている past politeざわざわしていましたざわざわしていませんでした
Conditional ばざわざわすればざわざわしなければ
Conditional たらざわざわしたらざわざわしなかったら
Volitionalざわざわしよう
Volitional politeざわざわしましょう
Potentialざわざわできるざわざわできない
Passiveざわざわされるざわざわされない
Causativeざわざわさせるざわざわさせない
Imperativeざわざわしろざわざわするな
1. rustling; murmuring
The sound of many things moving or people talking at once, creating a low, continuous noise. Typical of leaves in wind or a crowded room.
The leaves are rustling.
The venue is buzzing with noise.
The wind made the leaves rustle.
The classroom was so noisy that I couldn't hear the teacher.
When the announcement began, the audience started murmuring, and everyone looked surprised.
2. feeling uneasy; unsettled
A psychological sensation of unease, anxiety, or foreboding. Often used to describe a gut feeling that something is wrong.
(むね)ざわざわする
I have an uneasy feeling.
I feel uneasy and can't calm down.
I feel unsettled, as if something bad is about to happen.
Ever since I heard that news, I've been feeling uneasy.
Before exam results come out, I always feel so anxious that I can't sleep at night.

ざわざわ is an onomatopoeia with two distinct uses: a physical sound and a psychological state.

SENSE 1 — PHYSICAL SOUND:
Describes a continuous, low-level noise from many sources — leaves in wind, a crowd murmuring, a restless audience.

SENSE 2 — PSYCHOLOGICAL UNEASE:
Describes a churning, unsettled feeling in the chest or heart — a sense that something is wrong.

Similar words

  • がやがや: noisier, more chaotic crowd noise (louder than ざわざわ)
  • そわそわ: restless, fidgety (visible physical anxiety, not a sound)
  • ざわめく: to stir, to murmur (related verb, not onomatopoeia)