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Welcome to Emojis 101

Welcome to Emojis 101

Hands up if you’ve been called out by your younger teammates for the incorrect use of emojis 😅🙋‍♀️

Yep, we get it … It’s super embarrassing, especially having a millennial let you know you’ve misunderstood. You guys loved our last blog ‘‘IYKYK’ and Other Social Media Lingo Explained’ so we thought we better provide you with a crash course all about emojis so you can get up to date. 

With over 3000 emojis available for us to use in 2022 🤯, you can see how millennials have taken the lead on this and ran with it. 

While putting together this article for you all, we were surprised to learn that emojis have become recognisable as their own language and are considered the world’s fastest-growing language today. We also learnt that there are key differences in how men and women use emojis, women are 11% more likely to use emojis that represent joy, whereas men are 35% more likely to use emojis that represent fear but overall women are 16% more likely to use emojis compared to men in general. 

In 2018 it was discovered that the ‘Face With Tears of Joy’ 😂 was the world’s most popular, but nowadays if you are caught using this be prepared to be called out for showing your age as the younger generations have redefined what’s funny and what’s not. 

Although we could probably recite emoji facts all day, we should probably jump straight into it. So grab your pen and notepad and let’s go! 🚀  

*But before we dive in, we do think it’s super important to note that using emojis is subjective and can be interpreted differently by so many of us. So throughout this guide, we will be showing you some very common emojis you may see regularly on platforms such as Facebook, Instagram, TikTok and even throughout your email marketing, which will hopefully give you a better understanding of how they are used in context.   

Emoji Key 

Due to the large amount of emojis that are quite similar we have also grouped some together. 

Emoji Meaning
😃😃😄😁Each of these faces represents delight, happiness and all round good vibrations.
😆😂🤣😹Although the tears of joy might be a dead giveaway, these faces best represent hysterical laughter.
😊Another smiling happy face, although these emojis provide warmth and care in their meaning.
😔😞😢😭😿Each of these faces represents sadness and disappointment.  
🙃😑These emojis can be confusing as they are neither happy nor sad and can often be used along with sarcasm.
🤢🤮🤒🤕🤧Each of these faces represents illness or injury.
😍🥰😻❤️💕Each of these faces represents love, awe and affection.
😤😠🤬😡😾Each of these faces represents anger and frustration. 
😳😱😨😰😥😓Each of these faces represents fearfulness, worry, anxiousness and stress.
🥵🔥🌶Best used when describing something, someone, someplace hot! Both literally and figuratively.
🥶🧊❄️Best used when describing something, someone, someplace cold.
😈😜😉These faces are a little cheeky so use them carefully.
😅😬🤦‍♀️🤦‍♂️These emojis are great to use when there is a close call or a massive oopsy.
😇The angel face is the perfect representation of innocence and sweetness.
😎This emoji is the epitome of cool.
👉👈This set of emojis is super popular among the millennial age bracket. Best representing bashfulness and cuteness overload.
💯= 100% or damn straight!
🤯= Mind blown, literally.
💀Dead. But in a good way, as in we just laughed so hard, we are now dead. This is another one that the Millenials have taken over.
🤤😋If you’re chatting about food or something that is delicious these are your go-to emojis.
👋🙋‍♀️🙋‍♂️The classic Hi or Hello.
👏🙌🎉🎊🥳💃🕺Did some call for a celebration? These guys best represent praise, party, celebration and an all-around good time.
🙈🙉🙊See no evil, hear no evil, speak no evil. These cute little guys represent the 3 wise monkeys. 
✊👊These guys pack a punch and are great for adding emphasis!!!
🙅‍♀️🙅‍♂️🚩✋🛑⛔️⚠️Who would have thought there would be a range of emojis to represent stop, don’t even go there or tread with caution.
💁‍♀️💁‍♂️🙄For all our sassy kings and queens out there, these emojis are for you. Great for adding character and personality to your text.
✨⭐️🌟💫Stars have become a popular beacon of positivity, but can sometimes be used sarcastically by millennials on apps such as TikTok. So just be careful of this one.
🌿🍃🌱These green little guys will often be seen on wellness posts representing tranquillity, nature, calm and peacefulness but again be mindful of the younger gen using these guys as it could represent something completely different.
🏳️‍🌈🏳️‍⚧💖👩‍❤️‍💋‍👩👨‍❤️‍💋‍👨👯‍♂️👯‍♀️When chatting about all things pride, the name given to the celebration of self-affirmation, dignity, equality, and increased visibility of LGBTQ+ people these symbols help to represent.
❤️🧡💛💚💙💜🤎🖤🤍Each colour of the rainbow is represented by a heart which makes selecting the right one super important, if you aren’t aware of colour theory here is a basic rundown of when to use the right colour. 

R = Love, Romance, Enthusiasm, Passion
O = Friendship, Endurance, Strength, Healing  
Y = Optimism, Kindness, Energy, Cheerfulness  
G = Nature, Health, Wealth, Growth 
BLU = Affection, Peace, Knowledge, Calm 
P = Mystery, Creativity, Imagination, Royalty 
BR = Earthy, Grounded 
BLK = Edgy, Cool, Mysterious
W = Sympathy, Gentleness

We know we’ve missed a few, and by a few, we mean a lot but we can’t spend all day listing over 3000 emojis … But it would be fun 😜

Emojis really do help to create a whole story, they are fun, creative, and super expressive allowing you to alter your text through your online presence. So now you have a better understanding of how to use emojis in certain content, why not test it out.  

If you’re not quite sure how to use emojis through your social media posts, blogs, EDM’s and more, we can help! Book in a professional social media profile review where our experts will provide recommendations to optimise your profiles and posts.

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Minna Salmesvuo

Social Media & Online Marketing Strategist