You get a WhatsApp message. You feel the need to respond, to acknowledge it in some way. But you have nothing to say. Or you don’t want to keep a conversation going. So what do you do? You send an emoji. It’s like emotional punctuation. A full stop with feelings.
Well, that’s what I do.
Last year I wrote about the problems in interpreting emojis in Coding matters: Lost in emoji translation. In spite of all the misunderstandings, emojis are part of modern communications.
Happy Emoji Day!
17 July is World Emoji day. According to the internet, Jeremy Burge established World Emoji day in 2014.
I had some questions about this:
Why 17 July?
Because it’s the date displayed on Apple’s calendar emoji to commemorate the launch of its iCal app in 2002. . 📅 Not that you can see the date on the little picture now.
Who is Jeremy Burge?
He is the founder of Emojipedia, and one of the world’s most cited emoji experts. I never thought of the need for an emoji expert. This is a good place for an emoji to show my surprise. Maybe the Face with Open Mouth Emoji? 😮
What is Emojipedia?
The name is a big clue. It is an encyclopedia for emojis. It documents every emoji, including meanings, history, design changes, and usage trends.
The serious business of silly pictures
You can’t just create a funny little picture and call it an emoji. There is a formal approval process for emojis. I’m not sure what emoji to use here. A policeman? 👮
This is a summary of the process:
- You submit a proposal to the Unicode Consortium. This includes a detailed description of the emoji and its intended meaning.
- The Unicode committee reviews the proposal. Yes: people are having serious meetings about whether a pickle deserves to exist.
- If the proposal is accepted, it moves forward to technical implementation. This is where designers create the artwork.
- The public has an opportunity to give feedback.
- If approved, the emoji becomes part of a Unicode release.
The Unicode Standard currently lists over 3,900 emojis. I can use the exploding head emoji (🤯) here to show shock, awe, amazement, and disbelief. Emojipedia agrees with my choice, although another site claims it means “illness, weakness, caution, and the theme of feeling unwell”. So much for clear communication. Now I don’t know what emoji to use.
My emoji struggles
I pride myself on my language skills. But I am not very emoji-literate. Sometimes I look at an emoji in a message and have no idea what it means. Or I search for an emoji using a keyword, and am surprised to see some of the options.
As part of my research, I have now learned the meaning of the Women with Bunny Ears emoji (👯). It doesn’t have anything to do with Hugh Hefner. That’s good to know. I was worried for a moment.
I thought multiple emojis just emphasise the emotion. That shows just how emoji-illiterate I am. According to the emoji combinator, a thoughtful combination communicates something specific. If a single emoji can cause confusion, imagine a whole string of them. It’s like an ancient Egyptian message in hieroglyphics.
Your guide to emoji fashion
In September 2025, the Unicode Consortium approved 163 new emojis. If you want to be up-to-date on all things emoji, here are the most popular new emojis to add to your messages:
- Ballet Dancer
- Fight Cloud: A cloud of dust with swirls and stars. This represents a fight or scuffle – no surprises there.
- Orca, also known as a “killer whale”. Probably requested by marine biologists, or very ambitious fisherpeople.
- Trombone, not to be confused with the Trumpet emoji. According to Emojipedia, the Trombone “may be used to reference the sad trombone sting”, especially when paired with a sad smiley face.” But the Trumpet is just a trumpet. (Add Woman Shrugging Emoji 🤷🏻♀️ here, because I don’t understand this. )
- Treasure Chest. Because so many of us chat about pirates.
- Hairy Creature, sort of like a “Big Foot”. Maybe this is for when your boss is approaching. Or maybe it’s for the mysteries we can’t explain, like the monster that eats tupperware lids.
- Landslide: A series of rocks falling down a cliff. Emojipedia doesn’t provide a meaning, but I can think of lots of places to use this. For all those times when you feel a sense of impending doom.
And the most popular of all: Distorted Face. This is a smiley face with large, bulging eyes looking upward, as though being distorted or warped. It can represent shock, amazement, or distress. It may be universal symbol of “I’m fine… but also not.” It may be the best way to summarise 2026 so far.
What’s your favourite new emoji?