plural emoji or emojis
: any of various small images, symbols, or icons used in text fields in electronic communication (as in text messages, email, and social media) to express the emotional attitude of the writer, convey information succinctly, communicate a message playfully without using words, etc.
The function of emoji, as [emoji developer Shigetaka] Kurita describes it—adding subtle emotional emphasis to a sentence in text—isn't too different from that of emoticons, the frowny and smiley faces that people have been making out of punctuation since the mid-1990s.—
Britt Peterson
compare emoticon
Britt PetersonExamples of emoji in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Clearly the Heat have to trade for Paul and then trade him away to get value of their own (insert emoji of choice here).
—Ira Winderman, Sun Sentinel, 3 June 2025
Table of emojis used to represent drugs on social media
Table with 2 columns and 17 rows.
—Karen Garcia, Los Angeles Times, 31 May 2025
In addition to shaping, hair-loving oils make an appearance, as well as strengthening amino acids and fragrance notes, putting heart emojis in our eyes.
—Annie Blackman, Allure, 31 May 2025
Leavitt's post also included the waving hand emoji.
—Alex Nitzberg, FOXNews.com, 28 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for emoji
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Ira Winderman, Sun Sentinel, 3 June 2025
Table of emojis used to represent drugs on social media
Table with 2 columns and 17 rows.
—Karen Garcia, Los Angeles Times, 31 May 2025
In addition to shaping, hair-loving oils make an appearance, as well as strengthening amino acids and fragrance notes, putting heart emojis in our eyes.
—Annie Blackman, Allure, 31 May 2025
Leavitt's post also included the waving hand emoji.
—Alex Nitzberg, FOXNews.com, 28 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for emoji
Cite this Entry
“Emoji.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/emoji. Accessed 6 Jun. 2025.
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