5 emoji everyone will be using incorrectly in 2023 (and what they do mean)

We all use emoji en masse in our WhatsApp messages. But do we always apply them correctly? Some come up with something very different from what you expect. We explain it to you.

We couldn’t live without emoji anymore, because they make communicating online considerably easier. After all, how exactly do you know if someone in a WhatsApp message is saying something very serious or is being very sarcastic? Emoji mostly solve that problem. And perhaps more importantly, it makes us lazier. A smiley, of course, is easier than typing hahahahahahahaha.

These emojis on WhatsApp have a different meaning these days

Each emoji has its own meaning. Yet sometimes the creators of the symbols have meant it differently than you use them, or the meaning changes. But what exactly is that about? We list them for you.

#1 Crying with laughter on WhatsApp

You probably use this emoji incredibly often on WhatsApp, but you are doing it “wrong. You would think it suggests that you find something so funny that you cry with laughter.

Yet the fork is slightly different. In fact, this emoji is used to express laughter that is meant to denigrate anger. Think trolls or making fun of people. In fact, a different emoji is intended for real laughter.

#2 Skull emoji

For real laughter use … the skull! Perhaps you associate this symbol with death or horror, but there’s none of that these days. People now use the emoji for extreme hilarity.

So you laugh yourself to death. So if you use it for that now, you’ll totally belong on WhatsApp.

Not so angry (Image: disney)

#3 Clown

Since IT, of course, we know that we cannot trust clowns and the same is true in emoji land. Where you might think of merriment or a good joke, with the clown on WhatsApp it is very different.

The emoji is often seen as very cynical. Someone with a separate idea. So this person does not look too positive. So it’s best to use it only with self-mockery. Allememaggies!

#4 Thumb up

By a thumbs up, nothing can be meant on WhatsApp other than that something is good, right? Whether it’s making an appointment, for example. Nowadays, however, it can also have a negative meaning.

The emoji can be interpreted as dismissive, passive aggressive and a way to end a conversation. Some even say the thumbs up is used by people who are too afraid to raise a middle finger. Well, of course, that’s how it gets complicated.

Thumbs up! (Image: Apple)

#5 Smiling emoji

But not only the thumb can be passive aggressive on WhatsApp. So is the normal smiling emoji these days. It can also come across as patronizing. Where are those times when the little symbol simply meant gratitude?

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