笑う（わらう） means "to laugh" in Japanese.
Pronounced wa-ra-u — it starts with w.
Spam w online in Japan = laughing out loud.
WWW
LOADING LAUGHTER...
WHERE IT COMES FROM.
From (笑)
Before w, Japanese netizens used （笑） — the kanji for laugh in brackets.
It got shortened to just w. More w's = more laughter. wwwww is practically rolling on the floor.
WWW
LOADING LAUGHTER...
HOW TO USE IT.
Use it now
See something funny? Drop a w.
Something hilarious? wwwwwww
Follow @Warauonfun for daily doses of Japanese internet humor.
WWW
LOADING LAUGHTER...
THE GRASS THEORY.
草 (Kusa)
Too many w's look like grass growing — so 草 (kusa = grass) became slang for extreme laughter. 草生えた = "grass sprouted" = I'm dead 💀
The internet finds a way.