The Internet and cell phone texting technology has bred a new symbolic language. It's known as the 'Emoticon' language, whereby emotions are conveyed through symbols created entirely through alphabets and other keyboard symbols. Emoticons are real fun to use in text messages and online chat. They convey what you want to say with brevity and save you from the tedium of using too many words. This language appeals to the right side - the creative part of our brain, which is designed to recognize patterns fast. This Buzzle article is a compilation of smiley faces for texting, chatting and social networking site status messages or posts.
Emoticons were popularized by instant messaging clients like Yahoo Messenger. It is a feature of a more 'human' Internet where real people communicate and express themselves. It remedies the rather impersonal nature of a text chat, where there is no way of knowing what the person at the other end is feeling. Neither online chatting, nor text messaging can be a substitute for real face-to-face conversation. However, it is convenient and enables you to stay connected anywhere, anytime. The symbols for Facebook and other social networking sites are not much different from text message symbols, but a bit more creative.
Here are some emoticons that you could use, to spice up your Facebook chat.
Making symbols on a keyboard is quite simple, as it uses all your regular punctuation symbols, along with alphabets. Most instant messengers, chat sites have their own emoticon code. Once you type in a text based emoticon, it gets replaced by a graphical image that is substituted in its place. Some just let you select emoticons out of a list of animated images. Listed in the table above are some of the most popular symbols for MySpace, Facebook and general text messaging.
There are many emoticons which you could make using your own imagination. It is a symbolic language, that's still in a nascent stage. You will get used to all these symbols once you get hooked to chatting online with friends. Learning the jargon is not a very difficult task. It is a part of the global language of communication that Internet has bred.
About Emoticons
Emoticons were popularized by instant messaging clients like Yahoo Messenger. It is a feature of a more 'human' Internet where real people communicate and express themselves. It remedies the rather impersonal nature of a text chat, where there is no way of knowing what the person at the other end is feeling. Neither online chatting, nor text messaging can be a substitute for real face-to-face conversation. However, it is convenient and enables you to stay connected anywhere, anytime. The symbols for Facebook and other social networking sites are not much different from text message symbols, but a bit more creative.
Text Chat Smileys
| Smiley Face Symbols | Meaning |
| :) | Smiling, Happy Face, Cheshire Cat Smile (Indicates that you are not to be taken seriously. This is the most commonly used emoticon ever.) |
| :-) | Smiley Face With a Nose (A more gentlemanly smile) |
| ;) | Friendly, Flirtatious Wink (Used when flirting, joking or hinting something) |
| :-P | Tongue Out (Mockery, Playful Banter, Mocking Disapproval) |
| :> | Evil, Devilish Grin or Happy Smile |
| ;-) | Wink with Smile (Ironic, Sardonic Humor or Happiness) |
| B-) | Cool Smile, Smile With Attitude, Smiling With Sunglasses On |
| 8-) | Wide Eyed Smile, Surprised Smile |
| :D | Laughter, Big Smile, Grin |
| :-D | Big Laugh |
| :-o | Shocked, Surprised, Shouting (The 'Oh No!' expression) |
| :-# | Secrecy ('My Lips are Sealed'), Blowing a Flying Kiss |
| :-J | Tongue in Cheek Smile ('I know your secret' smile) |
| :-( | Unhappy, Sad |
| O:-) | Angelic Smile |
| :-))) | Big Smile |
| :-C | Incredibly Jaw Dropping |
| :-| | Disgust, Plain Neutral Face |
| :'-( | Crying, Sentimental |
| |-) | Asleep, Sleepy |
| :-|| | Angry |
| :-* | A Kiss |
| >:) | Devil's Smile |
| :-x | Kiss |
| :-1 | Smirk |
| >8-D | Evil Crazy Laughter |
| :-\ | Skepticism |
| <:-) | Dumb Question, Dunce |
| :-)8 | Sports a bow tie |
| [:-) | Wearing a Walkman |
| :*) | Drunk |
| [:] | Robot |
| :-{) | Mustache smile |
| :-[ | Vampire |
| |-O | Yawns |
| :-Q | Smoking |
| :-9 | Licks lips |
| :-& | Tongue-tied |
| :-)-o | Doctor, Medical Professional |
| *<:-) | Santa Claus |
| X-( | Death/Suicide |
| @>--;-- | A Rose |
| ~:o | Baby |
| :-S | Senseless, Makes no modicum of sense |
| ?-( | Black Eye |
| })i({ | Butterfly |
| C=:-) | Chef |
| *<<<<+ | Christmas Tree |
| 8^ | Chicken |
| &:-) | Curly Hair |
| *<):o) | Clown |
| :-.) | Cindy Crawford |
| :-} | Embarassed |
| =):-) | Uncle Sam |
Facebook Chat Emoticons
Here are some emoticons that you could use, to spice up your Facebook chat.
| Facebook Chat Symbols | Meaning |
| :) | Smile |
| :-( | Sad |
| =D | Laugh |
| :o | Shocked |
| ;) | Wink and a Smile |
| :-P | Mocking Smile |
| :-* | Kiss |
| :v | Pacman |
| >:( | Grumpy |
| :/ | Uncertain |
| :'( | Crying |
| ^_^ | Happy |
| 8) | Nerd |
| B| | Cool |
| <3 | Love |
| 3:) | Devil |
| O:) | Angel |
| -_- | Sigh |
| o.O | Uh? |
| >:o | Angry |
| :3 | Cat Smile / Coy |
| (y) | Like |
| :putnam: | Putnam Face |
| (^^^) | Shark |
| <(") | Penguin |
| :|] | Robot |
Making symbols on a keyboard is quite simple, as it uses all your regular punctuation symbols, along with alphabets. Most instant messengers, chat sites have their own emoticon code. Once you type in a text based emoticon, it gets replaced by a graphical image that is substituted in its place. Some just let you select emoticons out of a list of animated images. Listed in the table above are some of the most popular symbols for MySpace, Facebook and general text messaging.
There are many emoticons which you could make using your own imagination. It is a symbolic language, that's still in a nascent stage. You will get used to all these symbols once you get hooked to chatting online with friends. Learning the jargon is not a very difficult task. It is a part of the global language of communication that Internet has bred.
