吵闹 (chǎo nào) is an adjective meaning 'noisy' or 'boisterous', describing a place, situation, or group of people that is loud and disorderly. The first character 吵 (chǎo) means 'to quarrel' or 'to make noise', often implying irritation; the second character 闹 (nào) means 'to be noisy', 'to cause a commotion', or 'to disturb'. Together, they form a reduplicative compound that intensifies the sense of disruptive, chaotic noise — not just volume, but also lack of calm or control.

This word is commonly used in everyday contexts: children playing loudly, crowded markets, construction sites, or neighbors arguing. It carries a slightly negative connotation — it’s rarely neutral or positive. Unlike more formal terms like 嘈杂 (cáo zá), 吵闹 is conversational and frequently appears in spoken Chinese and informal writing. It can modify nouns directly (e.g., 吵闹的街道) or serve as a predicate (e.g., 这里太吵闹了).