emoticon
2 definitions
• 1 example
1
an image made up of symbols such as punctuation marks, used in text messages, emails, etc. to express a particular emotion
2
a sideways image of a face formed by keyboard symbols, which is used in emails to express a particular emotion, for example :-) to express happiness, or :-( to express sadness:
Examples:
The smiley face and other emoticons give a concise way of expressing sentiments that otherwise would be difficult to detect in e-mail.