Guidance: Respond with creepiness of your own, but do it with the bright yellow moon face, staring to its right. 🌝

Image for article titled Chinese people mean something very different when they send you a smiley emoji
Image: Wechat

Picking your nose 

On the surface: Maybe there’s something in your nose?

Below the surface: “I despise you.” (Yes, it’s a recurring theme.)

Background: The emoji has a frown and its eyes look to the right side, half-open.

Usage: Send a smiley face in response—making clear the feeling is mutual.

Image for article titled Chinese people mean something very different when they send you a smiley emoji
Image: Quartz

Shiba 

On the surface: It’s a dog breed from Japan.

Below the surface: “I am just cute and innocent. What are you talking about? I have no idea.” (Also: “I despise you.”)

Background: Note the side-looking expression with the closed mouth. So pretentious, while simultaneously cute and innocent. This is more of a sticker than an emoji, meaning you’ll have to download it on your own, rather than access it from a keyboard. It hasn’t yet been added on WeChat or iOS, for instance, but it’s widely used on the internet. It originated from a Japanese rescue dog named Kabosu in 2008.

Usage: We haven’t figured this out yet. Try responding with a shiba. Experiment.

Hopefully the above is useful. At the very least it should make you paranoid when communicating via emoji in China. Elderly people in that country, if they use emoji at all, are prone to (link in Chinese) taking a smiley face at, er, face value. At least you’ll know better now.

📬 Sign up for the Daily Brief

Our free, fast, and fun briefing on the global economy, delivered every weekday morning.