The last few weeks have been pretty rough on elder Millennials. As TikTok trends infiltrated other mainstream media, we learned that skinny jeans were completely out of style and that parting our hair on the side reveals that we were born in a year that starts with a “1.” And as if donning deliberately unflattering fashion trends weren’t bad enough, the crying laugh emoji was taken from us. We were told, unequivocally, that using this emoji made us look extremely uncool in the eyes of our younger peers. š«š. This will be pretty hard on the Gossip Genie team since this is our most frequently used emoji.
While we absolutely are within our rights to ask ourselves why we care what 17-year-olds think, we do have to recognize that the emoji keyboard has taken on a lot more meaning than it did a few years ago.Ā At Gossip Genie, we work to develop content calendars for our clients that are on-trend and speak to our audiences in the tone they would use. We would hate to come across as inauthentic, or far worse, accidentally misuse an emoji in a caption, thus bringing an entirely unintended meaning to the post. We have to be very selective with the emojis we use and we have to understand all of the nuances and loading meanings behind them, even though they might quickly evolve.
Below are some of the most frequently used emojis (and emoji pairings) we’ve seen on social media and what they might mean. Keep in mind, many of these emojis can have multiple meanings, or may mean different things in various contexts. But the Genies got together and tried to best explain what they might communicate.
If you’re born after 2000, can you do us a favor and let us know if we got any wrong? š¤”
šš : Shy, nervous, acting coy
: Precious, innocent, “I’m baby”Ā
š¤”: You played yourself, looking like an idiot, making a mistake
: Showing up awkwardly OR getting rowdy
: Big yikes, bless their soul OR really sadĀ
: I’m the boss, just shared some gossip, nonchalantĀ
: It’s really good, chef’s kiss, Italian gesture
_____: To put emphasis on the word in between the sparklesĀ
: SarcasmĀ
Ā : Slow blinks, eyes wide open, seeing something you shouldn’t have seen, welpĀ
š: Greatest of all time (GOAT)Ā
š§¢: Lie, no cap
: A small amountĀ
: “Have you seen this?” OR “That’s none of my business,” OR paying attentionĀ
:Ā Sarcastically pretending you’re doing ok when you’re not
