What is the reading of 笑 when used as a “lol” or “heh” interjection? Is it わらい or something shorter?
Is the reading the same when written as “w”? What if it’s repeated like 笑笑 or wwww?
You usually do not have to read it out loud, but if you do need to, you can read it as わらい. When 笑 is enclosed in parentheses (i.e., (笑)
), it can be read かっこわらい, too.
In slangy contexts わら is also possible, but it may sound derogatory or otaku-like.
Related: Pronunciation of「ww」(笑い)