The Most-Used Emojis on the Planet

…That you have probably never seen before.

Can I have your WeChat?

This is a question you might not know how to answer. Outside China, WeChat is just recently making way into conversation and yet to be adopted. But in China, there are 700 million of us using WeChat monthly. There are also 700 million of us using very different emojis in a very different way.

The first piece of advice I give anyone who sets foot on Chinese soil: download WeChat immediately. In China, WeChat is synonymous with basic communication. It trumps phone calls, emails, text messages, and all other messaging apps. It’s seamlessly adopted by locals, visitors, and expats alike. WeChat seals business deals and sparks friendships. WeChat is how you connect with your handyman and get the latest news from your favorite workout studios. WeChat is king, and we are its loyal servants.

While this mega-app has yet to gain equal influence abroad, the loyalty of its Chinese users is unwavering. As a non-Chinese living in China, I’m also a steadfast WeChat devotee. I constantly push family and friends back in the States to download the app. This often leads to full-on, unsolicited WeChat tutorials whenever I’m back home for a visit.

But it never sticks. My loved ones are hooked on WhatsApp and iMessage. Usually, I chalk it up to stubbornness and brush it off. Recently, however, their dismissal of WeChat got me thinking. Why don’t my fellow Americans see the greatness? Perhaps part of it is being creatures of habit, but there might be some other friction to the app. While for the most part it is willing and ready to be adopted by an international crowd, it is not without its cultural nuances.

One of these quirks is its set of emojis found within the app. In addition to your standard emoji keypad, WeChat offers it own separate brand of little yellow faces. To a non-local, many of these emojis are baffling, often downright bizarre. Their apparent randomness is certainly mystifying — a page of waving smileys is followed immediately by penguins who appear to be in a serious relationship. And right after that, a bloody dagger. The dagger literally has blood dripping from it.

For us China residents and lovers, the unexpected is the norm. So we roll with it, making up our own rules of engagement for these random little emojis. Even so, we typically just opt for the standard emoji keyboard — the one that’s fully integrated into our native language and social customs. When I venture into WeChat emoji territory, I’m usually making a point to mix things up or to be funny. But, I will admit, at first glance they do look a little weird.

Why would you send a picture of a little guy picking his nose? Why is that army man smoking a cigar? What exactly does a wilted rose emote? And what’s with the one that appears to be vomiting?

My curiosity took hold, and I did a little research. Here are the best of the secret army of yellow characters, all there waiting to emote what you can’t find the words to say.

The guy with the red bandana.
This conveys determination. Usually, it is used to encourage someone. Let’s say your friend has a big presentation at work tomorrow. You can send this her way to say, “You can do it!”.

The guy wearing a helmet and smoking a cigar.
This emoji is hilarious to me. It looks to be a reference to “Good Morning, Vietnam.” In reality, it’s supposed to say, “Yeah, I’m cool.” Let’s say you’ve aced a tough test, and your friends congratulate you. You can respond a little smugly with this face.

The little dude pointing two fingers at each other.
This little cutie is meant to convey meekness and seek pity. In addition to, “Please forgive me,” it can also mean, “don’t blame me — it wasn’t my fault.” I often receive it when someone is late because they are lost.

Bloody knives.
As you might have predicted, a bloody knife means, “I’m going to kill you”, but in a funny, cute way, of course. If someone teases you, a bloody cleaver will say, “Shove off!”. I’m told the cleaver and dagger have the same effect, so use your weapon of choice.

The nose-picker.
This emoji is pretty gross and might be enough to turn some people off of WeChat emojis altogether! Apparently, it means, “You’re so boring that I’d rather pick my nose than talk to you.” Who would have guessed? It is very popular emoji.

The chuckle.
I love this giggler. Cute and smiley, it demonstrates a specific kind of laughter that’s slightly awkward. I often abandon my regular emoji keyboard and fish into my WeChat emojis for this specific one.

Dizzy and drowsy.
Sometimes I feel like actual my face looks exactly like a mixture of these two emojis. They are a great way to put an image to your hungover, sleepless, or stressed-out state.

Sly.
I like this because it’s really creepy and makes people uncomfortable. It’s a great emoji to use when trying to convince a friend to join you for a night of drinking and mischief. A great emoji to use when trying to convince your friend to come out on the town with you.

Note: these rules are not set in stone. Apparently the traditional smiley face is now used ironically to say, “Goodbye. Please stop talking to me.” Talk about some sass.

The Subtle Difference of Emoting and Denoting

Standard emojis, used outside of China, are all about feelings. Excited? Sleepy? Angry? No matter your mood, there’s an emoji for it. While the WeChat emojis might also express emotion, they tend mostly to serve a greater purpose — they convey actual messages, denoting a strong and specific statement via a simple little picture.

With a standard emoji keyboard, you’re spoiled for choice. Pages of options range from homes to helicopters to alligators. Excited for your trip to the beach? Send a crab, some sunshine, clinking beer mugs, and a bikini. Wishing someone a happy birthday? Give your sentiment some sparkle with champagne, a crown, a martini, and a dancer in a red dress. Maybe even throw a unicorn in there — because why not? On the WeChat keyboard, by comparison, there are very few emoji choices. WeChat doesn’t do embellishment. It ditches the superfluous pictures in favor of an elite group of emojis, each making its own decisive statement.

But Wait, There’s More…

Funny surprises keep us WeChatters coming back for more. My personal favorite: images that fall from the virtual sky, showering your WeChat message. Sending certain words triggers this delightfully random effect. Typing “miss you” brings shooting stars. “World cup” unleashes a tumbling pile of soccer balls. “Birthday” gives you cakes. Send a casual “xoxo,” and prepare for a flood of kissy faces. When trying to plan your birthday party, you’ll face a cascade of cakes that never ends.

While this function is cool, it can also get awkward — for example, when you apologize for missing your colleague at the conference. Cue shooting stars.

Collecting Stickers Like When We Were Kids.

And finally something that unites all users, despite different backgrounds: the sticker. At first glance stickers might appear to be nothing more than GIFs, but they open up whole worlds of possibilities. If your friend sends you a sticker you that makes you fall out of your chair laughing, you can save it in your sticker library for easy access and use. Having the best sticker game in a group chat is a coveted spot in WeChat world.

Actually, stickers are probably even better at conveying emotion than the standard WeChat emojis! Of course, there can still be some misunderstandings in what a particular GIF is actually trying to say, but the entertainment factor is always there. Both Chinese and foreigners alike understand that if you don’t know what to say…just send a sticker.

That’s a form of communication we can all get behind.