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I have no words to describe it. Oxford Dictionaries, as owned by the Oxford University Press (OUP), has announced its “word” of the year is … not a word. It’s an emoji.
To be precise, it’s the “tears of joy” emoji. Which makes me very “crying face emoji”, because the tears of joy emoji certainly doesn’t deserve to be emoji – sorry, word – of the year.
I don’t even object that much to the OUP trying something different in selecting its word of the year. Sure, it’s ridiculous that the word of the year isn’t an actual word. However, emoji, as I have written about before, are now a part of our communicative fabric. We use them to convey myriad emotions and thoughts.
President of Oxford Dictionaries, Casper Grathwohl, says: “Emoji culture has become so popular that individual characters have developed their own trends and stories.”
The problem is there are so many better emoji than the tears of joy emoji. It has one meaning – crying with laughter. These five emoji would be much better choices, allowing for multiple meanings:
Photograph: Emojipedia
1. Nail painting emoji
The nail painting emoji does not mean “I am painting my nails”. It means yeah, I just casually pulled that off; sure, that was pretty sassy; or, I don’t care. It’s not just for women either. The comments underneath this article? *nail painting emoji*
Photograph: Emojipedia
2. Aubergine emoji
The aubergine, or eggplant, emoji definitely has nothing to do with vegetables . Instead – reader, I’m sorry – it is has become the universal phallic symbol. It’s a penis. If a man sends a message on Tinder consisting of just the aubergine emoji and a question mark, shut it down.
Photograph: Emojipedia
3. Unamused face emoji
One of my most frequently used emoji, and judging by the messages I receive and tweets I see, other people’s too. In a sense, the unamused face is the emoji equivalent of throwing shade. It can also be used to express doubt or cynicism.
Photograph: Emojipedia
4. The poo emoji
Use of the poo emoji can be a bit of a minefield because it can look very different across iOS and Android platforms. While the iOS poo has a smiley face – along the lines of South Park’s Mr. Hankey the Christmas Poo – Android prefers a, well, what can only be described as a steaming turd. With flies attached. All the same, the poo emoji is a succinct way of summing up the way you feel about something entirely unimpressive.
Photograph: Emojipedia
5. Person raising both hands in celebration emoji
Otherwise known as the praise emoji. In a cold, brutal world, the celebratory emoji to hail a person and their successes is truly welcome. Some misguided individuals use this emoji as a high-ten (as do others with the the prayer emoji – just wrong), but the raised hands are all about appreciating another’s brilliance. However, Microsoft’s iteration is absolutely terrifying.
I’m still not entirely sure, however, that the Oxford Dictionaries’ word of the year should have been an emoji. Because, after all …
