55+ Popular Emojis and What They Mean—Including the Most-used Emoji of 2022!
A small digital image can be worth a thousand words.
Loudly Crying Face. Rolling on the Floor Laughing. Smiling Face with Heart Eyes. Fire. Hand Clap.
If you’ve spent any amount of time texting your friends (or children!) or scrolling through social media apps like Twitter and TikTok, then you know that those phrases are among the most popular emojis used to give a little extra emphasis and emotion to the typed word.
But did you know that, according to the Unicode Consortium (the nonprofit organization devoted to maintaining the world standard for text and emoji), there are 3,664 different emojis? That’s a pretty staggering number!
With that many types of emojis—all the different faces and symbols out there for you to use in texting or on social media platforms—trying to keep them all straight can be downright overwhelming! Do you use the Winking Face emoji to be flirty, sarcastic or both? In this emoji list, we will give you a rundown on some of the most popular emojis—both faces and symbols—along with a rundown of what they are called and their meanings according to the Emojipedia database.
Ready to dive in and learn all about emojis? Then read on!
55+ Emojis and Their Meanings
Emoji Faces
1. Thinking Face 🤔
This emoji means you are mulling something over or need some time to think about what the other person has suggested. You can also use it in a more sarcastic manner when you are mocking or skeptical about something.
2. Grinning Face with Star Eyes 🤩
The star-struck emoji is used when you think that something (or someone!) is amazing, exciting or just pretty dang fabulous.
Related: #AllTheLikes: 300 Instagram Captions That Will Get Those Followers Liking Your Feed
3. Partying Face 🥳
Surrounded by confetti, wearing a cute party hat and blowing a party horn, the partying face is a perfect punctuation to use when celebrating good news, someone’s birthday, or a reason for a literal or figurative party.
4. Smiling Face with Hearts 🥰
An aura of love and affection surrounds this smiling face with three hearts. Feeling warm and fuzzy about someone? Love what your texting partner is saying? Send this one back!
5. Tears of Joy 😂
Typically used to show something is funny or pleasing—that you are shedding a tear from laughing so hard—Tears of Joy was the most-used emoji on Twitter in the early part of 2022!
6. Rolling on the Floor Laughing 🤣
The tilt of the yellow face in this emoji indicates that whatever has been said is not just funny, but it is so funny that it has you rolling on the floor laughing so hysterically that you are crying happy tears. So ROFL, friends.
Related: If You Need a Laugh (and Likes), Try These 100 Funny Instagram Captions!
7. Confused Face 😕
Thanks to its sad eyes and frown, Confused Face conveys a wide variety of feelings, like sadness, disappointment, frustration, confusion and hesitation.
8. Face Screaming in Fear 😱
This one sure does look like it was inspired by Edvard Munch’s iconic painting The Scream! Horror, fright, shock, and intense excitement (both positive and negative) are some of the extreme emotions that the face screaming in fear emoji represents.
9. Smiling Face with Sunglasses 😎
Cool, easy-going and carefree are a few of the expressions represented by the smiling face wearing sunglasses.
10. Shocked Face with Exploding Head 🤯
It’s common to use this in response to something that is mind-blowing, but the exploding head emoji can also indicate that you are feeling overwhelmed or frustrated.
11. Pile of Poo 💩
We gotta admit, this is kind of a gross emoji, but with a shape that looks like soft-serve chocolate ice cream, it is also one of the cutest! The poop can be used to literally represent bathroom issues, or just a general feeling of thinking something is… well, crappy.
12. Smiling Face With Smiling Eyes 😊
With its rosy cheeks, this smiling-face emoji can be used to indicate that something (or someone) is making you blush. It’s also used to express gratefulness, satisfaction, or a general feeling of happiness.
Related: The 10 Emojis Hated by Gen Z
13. Pensive Face 😔
This emoji perfectly depicts the feeling of sadness with its closed eyes and flat mouth. Used to represent sadness and other similar feelings like disappointment, regret or loneliness, this emoji makes us sad just by looking at it!
14. Smiling Face with Open Hands 🤗
Also known as "Hugging Face," this emoji gives a virtual hug with its hands opened and palms facing out. It can be used to express feelings of thanks, support, care, affection and gratitude, as well as other feelings of excitement and enthusiasm. This is why some people think this emoji looks like jazz hands!
15. Face Vomiting 🤮
When you want to express a feeling of literal or metaphorical disgust over something, the barfing emoji is your best friend. It also comes in handy when you are feeling sick to your stomach, physically or emotionally.
16. Winking Face 😉
Using this emoji can mean that you are making a joke, something is ironic, or has a hidden meaning, but it can also be used in a playful, flirting manner.
17. Loudly Crying Face 😭
Sometimes, you just gotta let the cries out! That’s what this wailing face with heavy streams of tears represents. In addition to representing something that has you inconsolable, this emoji can also mean uncontrollable laughter or overwhelming joy.
18. Pouting Face 😡
Also known as "Enraged Face," when something has you spitting mad or gets your blood boiling, it’s time to bust out this red-faced, angry-eyed emoji. Its name is the Pouting Face Emoji, but the furrowed brows and frowning mouth seem much more angry than pouty!
19. Face Savoring Food 😋
There are a few tongue-out emojis. This emoji, in particular, is licking its lips after eating something delicious. In addition to letting someone know that their lasagna was *chef’s kiss* this playful tongue-out emoji can be used in a flirty way, or to express that you were kidding about your message.
20. Sleeping Face 😴
Sign off at the end of a bedtime text session with the sleeping face emoji. Or let your pal know that you are totally bored—aka, the topic is a snooze.
Related: 100 Sassy Instagram Captions for When You Are Feeling Extra Feisty
21. Weary Face 😩
Sometimes, you are just so dang tired, sad, or frustrated you want to give up! Enter Weary Face, with its closed eyes, a furrowed brow and frown.
22. Overheated Face 🥵
Also called "Hot Face," this emoji is a reddish-orange face has beads of sweat, its tongue sticking out, and furrowed brows. Use it when hot yoga was too much for you to handle this morning, you’ve been sweating it out waiting to hear back on some life-changing news… or you think someone is physically attractive.
23. Flushed Face 😳
With its wide eyes and red cheeks, this animated emoji is blushing with embarrassment. It can also mean embarrassment, shame, shyness, disbelief, amazement, shock, surprise or any other intense emotions that might leave you feeling rather flushed.
24. Shushing Face 🤫
The Shushing Face emoji generally means that you are letting someone in on a secret or sharing a secret thought, but it can also be used to indicate silence.
25. Face With Open Mouth 😮
Also known as Surprised Face, this emoji is a visual depiction of “Oh my gosh!” or “No way!”—generally, any feeling of awe, surprise or disbelief.
26. Smiling Face with Horns 😈
Whether you are plotting a nefarious scheme or agreeing that something is inappropriately amusing, the grinning purple devil emoji will help you express your naughty side (both in general texting and flirty sexting!).
Related: How Much Time You Should Be Spending On Social Media
27. Smiling Face with Halo 😇
This emoji can represent angels, prayers, and blessings, but it can also represent angelic or good behavior. Like sending a text to your husband: “I ironed all your shirts 😇”
28. Nerd Face 🤓
A smiling yellow face with thick black glasses is typically used to indicate that you are geeking out about something, feeling smart or in an awkward mood.
29. Zipper-Mouth Face 🤐
This is another emoji that conveys a secret, aka “my lips are sealed." Other meanings for the zipped lips emoji are “I’ll shut up now,” or “zip it.”
30. Face with Uneven Eyes and Wavy Mouth 🥴
The official name of this emoji is quite a mouthful compared to its nickname, "Woozy Face." With its crumpled mouth and one eye half-open, this emoji is typically used to indicate that someone is feeling drunk or hungover but can also indicate feeling tired, confused or emotional.
31. Face Blowing a Kiss 😘
This emoji’s puckered lips blow the recipient a kiss in the shape of a small red heart. Face Blowing a Kiss can mean that you are kissing someone goodnight or goodbye, or that you are sharing love and affection.
Related: Cupid's Calling! Here are 100 of the Best Instagram Caption Ideas to Post on Valentine's Day
32. Sad But Relieved Face 😥
Mostly used to indicate being upset but phew! glad that all turned out okay, this face has small eyes, a furrowed brow, a slight frown and a bead of sweat indicating concern or anxiety. It can also be used to show concern, disappointment or sympathy.
33. Face with Rolling Eyes 🙄
A virtual eye roll, this face indicates disdain, boredom, disapproval, frustration—or a general sarcastic “whatever.”
34. See-No-Evil Monkey 🙈
Along with his brothers, Hear-No-Evil and Speak-No-Evil, Speak-No-Evil is one of the Three Wise Monkeys, collectively representing the centuries-old proverb. See-No-Evil Monkey playfully represents that you are hiding, in disbelief, cringing or can’t bear to look.
35. Hear-No-Evil Monkey 🙉
Astonishment and disbelief over what you are hearing are what the Hear-No-Evil Monkey represents. Think of it as virtually placing your hands over your ears as you sing out loud, “La-la-la-la-la. I can’t hear you!”
36. Speak-No-Evil 🙊
With his hands covering his mouth, Speak-No-Evil playfully symbolizes a mischievous oopsie, that you can’t believe what you just said, or that what was said should remain a secret.
Related: 120+ Instagram Captions That Perfectly Sum Up Your Friendship With Your Bestie
37. Unamused Face 😒
Somewhat of a virtual side-eye glare, the Unamused Face expresses a range of negative feelings—like irritation, grumpiness, annoyance and skepticism.
38. Facepalm 🤦
A hand against the forehead of the yellow face emoji (or person emoji) expresses frustration or dismay over how ridiculous a person or situation is. Sometimes called the "Shaking Head Emoji," the Facepalm can be used to mean “oh my God” or “sheesh.”
39. Upside-Down Face 🙃
The classic smiley face is flipped upside down in this emoji, which is used to suggest silliness or goofiness or take a tone of sarcasm or irony.
40. Zany Face 🤪
This one is technically called “Grinning Face With One Large and One Small Eye,” but Zany Face has a much better ring to it when you want to express that something is silly or off-kilter.
Related: All About Mastadon, The New Twitter Alternative
41. Saluting Face 🫡
Also known as “Yes Sir,” the Saluting Face was one of the new emojis added in 2021, and is used as a sign of respect, recognition or gratitude. It is also used to depict a sense of pride and unity.
42. Grinning Face 😀
Somewhat of a classic emoji, Grinning Face, with its wide eyes and wide grin, conveys a general sense of cheer or pleasure.
43. Grimacing Face 😬
Launch the Grimacing Face emoji when you are in a tense exchange, and you don’t quite know how to reply. It can also be used when you are nervous or embarrassed about something or generally feeling awkward.
Related: 125 One-Word Instagram Captions To Keep Your Feed Short and Sweet!
Emoji Symbols
44. Clapping Hands 👏
Most often, the clapping hands emoji is used to signify that something is worthy of applause. But it can also be used for emphasis in a sentence to indicate a sense of drama or urgency when the user places a clapping hands emoji in between each word in a sentence.
45. Fire 🔥
Using a burning flame means that you think something is awesome or cool—or when it comes to flirty texting, you think the other person is sexy or hot.
46. Red Heart ❤️
Love something or someone? The red heart emoji is a classic to convey love, affection, gratitude or appreciation.
47. Peach 🍑
You can absolutely use this cute little fruit if you are hankering for a juicy peach as a snack. But if you are sending someone a flirty message, inserting this emoji means you think they have a nice tush.
48. Eggplant 🍆
Officially named Aubergine, you can use the eggplant symbol to describe the actual vegetable, or to indicate that eggplant parm is on the dinner menu this weekend. But it has a much more suggestive meaning in the social media zeitgeist thanks to its phallic appearance.
49. Folded Hands 🙏
There’s quite a bit of variation in what the folded hands emoji represents. It’s often used as a gesture of prayer, blessings, thank you, please and hope. But is also sometimes used as a virtual high five.
50. Hundred Points 💯
Designed to look like the perfect score of 100 that a teacher would mark on a student’s test in red ink, this bold red, angled number 100 is often used to mean 100 percent, full approval or "absolutely."
51. Skull and Crossbones ☠️
The skull and crossbones symbol is associated with death or danger (and even pirates!) but it can also be used to refer to something poisonous, misfortune, fear, angst or negativity.
52. Thumbs Up Sign 👍
Share your approval of a job well done—or simply acknowledge your agreement—with the thumbs-up symbol.
53. Heart Hands 🫶
Two hands forming a heart shape is a symbol used to express love, support or respect.
54. Sparkles ✨
This trio of glittery flashes originally represented newness (aka sparkling new) or cleanliness (sparkling clean) in its early days, then became a symbol meaning love, happiness, glowing, gratitude or excitement. But in late 2021, the sparkles emoji shot to the #3 emoji in the world, frequently used on social media to bookend a word or phrase for emphasis or convey a mocking or sarcastic tone.
55. Thought Balloon 💭
Like the thought bubbles used in drawn cartoons, the cloud-like thought bubble symbol can represent thinking or dreams.
56. Light Bulb 💡
The light bulb symbol stands for electricity or power, but it can also be used to indicate a brilliant idea, knowledge or an "a-ha moment."
57. Collision 💥
A cartoonish star-like fiery burst, the collision symbol is like a bang, explosion or crash—something super exciting or surprising.
58. Birthday Cake 🎂
Complete with frosting and lit candles, the birthday cake emoji is a commonly used symbol to mark a celebration. Of course, it can also just mean you are hangry for some yummy cake!
59. Heart on Fire ❤️🔥
Voted the "Most Popular New Emoji" at the 2022 World Emoji Awards presented by Emojipedia, the flaming heart represents a passionate burning love or an extreme form of love and desire!
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