emoji

noun

emo·​ji ē-ˈmō-jē 

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

Examples of emoji in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Shortly after, Quavo, who was a part of Migos alongside Offset and the late Takeoff, posted a prayer-hands emoji on his Instagram Story. —Alejandra Gularte, Vulture, 7 Apr. 2026

People also often use numbers or emojis to communicate their meaning indirectly. —Sharlette A. Kellum, The Conversation, 6 Apr. 2026

The post also included a cozy photo of the couple lounging outside together with a few bright red heart emojis. —Jessica Schladebeck, New York Daily News, 3 Apr. 2026

Other contestants offered sympathy as well, with season 17 star Jewels Sparkles responding with a series of broken heart emojis. —Joey Nolfi, Entertainment Weekly, 3 Apr. 2026

Word History

Etymology

borrowed from Japanese, literally, "pictograph," from e "picture, drawing" + moji "letter, character"

First Known Use

1997, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for emoji

• koji
• logie
• shoji
• pedagogy

Kids Definition

emoji

noun

emo·​ji ē-ˈmō-jē 

plural emoji or emojis

: any of various small images, symbols, or icons used in electronic communication (as email) to express the feelings or attitude of the writer or to present information concisely or playfully