Smiley Faces and Emoticons

By: Vangie Beal

Last Updated: 07-11-2013 , Posted: 05-21-2009

A text smiley face -- often called a smiley or emoticon -- is used in text message and online chat communications to convey an emotion. Learn how to make text smiley faces in this Webopedia.com text message and online chat guide.

Use a Smiley Face to Show Emotion in Text Messages and Online Chat

A smiley face (also called a smiley or emoticon) is used in text-based communications to convey an emotion, much in the same way we use body language. Text smiley faces are used in the same way that a person's voice or facial expression changes when having a face-to-face conversation with someone.

For example, if you were joking with someone and sent a text message saying GAL (meaning "get a life") the person receiving your message would think you are making a rude comment. If you send the same message with a happy text smiley face : ) following the text abbreviation, the person would understand you were smiling when you sent the message (meaning you were joking with them). In a face-to-face communication you would laugh or really smile to convey the "I'm joking around or kidding with you" emotion.

When you use smiley faces, you basically are showing emotions through characters in text messaging helps the receiver correctly interpret your intent and meaning.

How to Make Smiley Faces

To create a smiley face you use standard keyboard characters and punctuation marks in sequences that look like facial expressions might. When viewing text smiley faces, they are all sideways. Here are some basics to get you started with understanding what different characters used in smiley faces mean:

From Text Smiley Faces to Graphical Emoticons

Some chat and instant message programs will automatically translate text smiley faces into graphical emoticons. In AOL Instant messenger (AIM), for example, if you type out the characters to make a "happy face" followed by "sad face" followed by "cool sunglasses" you would enter the following characters:

:)   :(   8-)

Once you've entered the text in to your AIM chat window and hit enter to send the text message, AIM converts the text face to a graphic face (emoticons) if it can recognize the smiley pattern. What you see on the screen in your AIM chat window will look like this:

This is how the emoticons would appear in your AIM chat window:

Smiley Faces and Their Meaning

Here are few examples of different smiley faces and their meanings. You can send any number of text faces or text images to help you convey an emotion when you text message or online text chat with people.

Icon Meaning :) Standard smile :-) With nose :-E Buck-tooth or Vampire >-) Evil grin :( Sad or frown smile :-( Sad with nose :-< Super sad :P Sticking tongue out (raspberry) (((H))) Hugs :-X Kiss on the lips `:-) One eyebrow raised :^) A broken nose :-& tongue tied E-:-) a Ham radio operator <:-) Uni-brow :-> Big grin happy (-}{-) Couple kissing :-Q Smoking $_$ Greedy @@ Rolling your eyes

Icon Meaning :-# With braces :'-) Happy Crying {:-) Toupee smile ;) Winking smile ;-) Winking smile with nose O:-) I'm an angel (boy) O*-) I'm an angel (girl) |-O Yawn (:-D Gossip, blabbermouth @>--;-- Rose @-}--- Rose ())>--- Rose =^.^= Cat O.o Confused C=:-) A chef (\_/) (o.o) (___)0 A bunny =-O "Uh-oh" ~( 8^(I) Homer Simpson

Icon Meaning :-! "Foot in mouth" :-D Laughter :*) Drunk smile :@ Exclamation "What???" :-@ Scream :-0 Yell %-( Confused :-----) Long nose (Liar!) :-.) Madonna :-($) Put your money where your mouth is (:I An egghead |-O Yawning :@) Pig smile <(-_-)> Robot d[-_-]b DJ with headphones ~:0 Baby -@--@- Eyeglasses \VVV/ King \%%%/ Queen

Editor's Recommendation: The following Webopedia.com online chat and text messaging guides offer definitions and translations for texting, chat, Twitter, online auction, online personals, classified ad and smiley face abbreviations.

1. Text Message Abbreviations
2. Smiley Faces and Emoticons
3. Online Auction and Classified Ad abbreviations
4. Online Personals Abbreviations
5. Twitter Chat Dictionary
6. Guide to Forum Etiquette
7. How to Text a Cellphone From a Computer