I noticed when a bunch of Japanese are sharing stories and a good part comes, they all react in unison.  It goes from one person talking to the entire group reacting with “oooooh”, the volume rising and the sound behind drawn out.  I imagined them all saying “wow” in unison, but long like “woooow”.  Then sometimes the reaction is “eeeeh?” with the sound of “are you kidding”? or “eeeeeh” with disapproval.  I almost laugh out loud each time this happens.  They become so animated and excited.  And how wonderful it might be to be the story teller and know everyone is so engaged in what you are saying.

I asked some of my Japanese friends about this and they didn’t know they reacted in unison.  “Oooooh” does mean like “wow” or “amazing”.  “Eeeeh” is used to mean different things and the tone changes based on the conversation.  It can be “What”?, “No way” or any other number of things.  It is used to convey surprise, shock, or disbelief.

Here’s a couple funny videos of some different ways to use Eeeeeh.