SPY x FAMILY (SPY×FAMILY)
わくわく！
Waku waku!
“I'm so excited!”
— Anya Forger
Answer both practice questions correctly to complete this line.
Not yetThe scene
Anya is a secret telepath adopted into a pretend family of a spy and an assassin — and to her, the whole dangerous double life is one long adventure. Eyes sparkling, she delivers this reaction whenever anything new is about to happen. It appears from episode 1 and recurs constantly, and in English-speaking fandom it is quoted in romaji, exactly as-is.
Word by word
| Japanese | Romaji | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| わくわく | waku waku | onomatopoeia: the feeling of your heart fluttering with excitement and anticipation |
| わくわくする | waku waku suru | 'to be excited' — glue する (suru, to do) onto the sound word to use it as a verb |
Grammar notes
Onomatopoeia: sounds that carry feelings
Japanese has hundreds of these sound-symbolic words, and doubling a short sound is a classic pattern: わくわく (excited), どきどき (heart pounding), きらきら (sparkling), ふわふわ (fluffy). They describe states and feelings, not just noises — a whole vocabulary with no verbs in sight.
Sound words become verbs with する
Add する and the sound word turns into a verb: わくわくする (to feel excited), どきどきする (to feel your heart pound). Anya's line is the bare sound word on its own — pure reaction, zero grammar, maximum feeling.
Can you say this in real life?
Good news: this one is completely safe in real life. わくわく is ordinary Japanese used by everyone from kids to office workers ('明日の旅行、わくわくする！' — 'I'm excited about tomorrow's trip!'). It is casual, though — in a formal email you would write 楽しみにしております.
Practice
Q1. What feeling does わくわく describe?
Q2. 「明日の旅行、＿＿する！」 (I'm so excited for tomorrow's trip!)
Read & Watch SPY x FAMILY
The best way to enjoy this line in the wild is to meet it in the original work. Official places to read and watch SPY x FAMILY will be listed here.
Manga
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Streaming
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DVD & Blu-ray
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