When email first began, users discovered a problem. Concise statements and words on a computer monitor didnt communicate emotion or intent very well. Almost everything sounded terse and harsh. It was difficult to convey the appropriate tone in which the message was intended.

To solve this problem, users created symbols to convey emotion and express feelings. These symbols are called smileys. Another term for them is emoticons which stands for emotional icons.

Although there are hundreds of symbols, the most common emoticon is the smiley face. Its created by typing a colon, a dash, and a closed parenthesis. This is how it appears . It may also appear without the nose (that is, without the dash), like this :).

If youre having trouble figuring this out, look at this symbol . Then, lean your head to the left. Or, put your left ear close to your left shoulder. Now, can you see the smiley face?

Appropriateness

Emoticons are neat, and you may want to use them when sending email messages to your friends. But, are these symbols appropriate in professional email correspondence? The answer is it depends.

Emoticons dont belong in ultra formal email correspondence. Yet, what about less formal situations? Can you use smileys in informal business correspondence where you are comfortable with the recipient? Yes, you can, as long as you exercise caution.

Caution

First, is this level of casualness appropriate for this situation? If informality is acceptable, then it may be okay to use smileys. However, if there is any chance the recipient will consider you less professional or less credible because of such informality, then refrain from using emoticons.

Second, will the person receiving the message understand the smileys? Not everyone is familiar with these little symbols. If the person has sent you messages containing emoticons, then its safe to say he/she understands. Otherwise, you dont really know for sure.

Heres the final cautious word. If theres any doubt, omit the smileys.

Definitions

Even if you never send an email message that contains emoticons, you need to know what they mean. Someday, someone might send you email that contains emoticons.

Here is a list of the most popular emoticons. Test yourself. Cover the definitions with a piece of paper and see how many you know, or can guess, without looking at the answers.

Definition of Smileys (Emoticons)

Smiley (Emoticon) Definition 1.:) or smile (happy) 2.:( or frown (sad) 3.:'( crying 4.O:) or O angelic 5.:D or :-D laughing 6.:-| apathetic 7.x-( brain dead 8.:-|| really angry 9.:* or :-* kiss 10.;) or ;-) wink (light sarcasm) 11.:P or :-p sticking tongue out 12.:-& tongue tied

Advanced Tip for Emoticon Experts

For those of you who are emoticon experts, here is an advanced tip. How do you punctuate smileys? The smiley is placed at the end of the sentence, after the punctuation. Here is an example.