A List of Smileys and Abbreviations

Below I give a list of smileys and abbreviations used in informal letters and e-mails.

For more smileys and acronyms look at netlingo and Acronym Finder.

SMILEYS

,-}

wry and winking

,.'v

(profile) has short hair

,:-)

shaved his left eyebrow off this morning

,-)

only has one eye, but is winking; wry and winking happy smiley

!-(

black eye

!-|

"I-am-a-Cylon-Centurian-with-one-red-eye-bouncing-back-and-forth."

!.'v

(profile) flat top

#-)

dead; partied ALL night

#:-)

:-) done by someone with sort of matted hair

#:-0

Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh

#:-o

"Oh, nooooooo!" (a la Mr. Bill); smiley done by someone with matted hair

#:o+=

Betty Boop

$$

for academic jobs

$$$

for industrial jobs

$$$$

for people starting up their own company

$-)

yuppie smiley; won the Lottery; won big at Las Vegas; Alex P. Keaton (from "Family Ties")

%

for bike accidents (a bit far-fetched)

%')

after drinking a fifth for lunch

%*@:-(

hung over

%*}

very drunk

%+{

lost a fight

%+|

beaten up

%-(I)

laughing out loud

%-)

has been staring at a green screen for 15 hours straight; message about people with broken glasses; stared too long at a monitor; cross-eyed; broken glasses; drunk with laughter; elephant man; long bangs

%-<I>

drunk with laughter

%-\

hungover

%-^

Picasso

%-^)

Picasso

%-{

sad variation

%-|

been working all night

%-}

humor variation

%-~

Picasso

%-6

braindead

%\v

Picasso

&-|

tearful

&-l

that made me cry

&.(..

crying

&:-)

from a person with curly hair

'-)

one eyed man; only has a left eye, which is closed; wink

':-)

accidentally shaved off one of his eyebrows this morning; one eyebrow

'~;E

unspecified 4-legged critter

( o ) ( o )

hooters

(-)

needing a haircut

(-:

left hand smiley; Australian; left handed; Don Ellis from Tektronix

(-::-)

Siamese twins

(-:|:-)

Siamese twins

(-_-)

secret smile

(-E:

wearing bifocals

(-o-)

Imperial Tie Fighter ("Star Wars")

(.)(.)

Ms. Dos

(: (=|

going to be a ghost for Halloween

(: (=|

wearing a ghost costume

(:)-)

likes to scuba dive; scuba diving

(:+)

big nose

(:-

unsmiley frowning

(:-#

I am smiling and I have braces (watch out for the glare!); message concerning something that shouldn't have been said

(:-$

message indicating person is ill

(:-&

message indicating person is angry

(:-(

the saddest smiley; unsmiley frowning; very unhappy or sad smiley

(:-)

no hair; smiley big face; bald; messages dealing with bicycle helmets; surprised

(:-*

kiss(ing)

(:-...

broken heart; heart-breaking message

(:-\

VERY sad

(:-{~

bearded

(:-|K-

formal message; formally attired

(:-D

message concerning another blabber mouth

(:-I

egghead

(:<)

message concerning blabber mouths

(:=)

two noses

(:>-<

message from a thief: hands up! Thief

(:^(

message concerning people with broken noses

(:I

egghead

(@ @)

You'r joking? You're kidding!

([(

robocop

(}-8]

left-handed bearded smiley with glasses and headphones

(00)

mooning you; pulling a mooner

(8-)

message from a four-eye; wears glasses

(8-{)}

glasses, moustache and a beard

(8-o

It's Mr. Bill!

(O--<

fishy

(V)=|

Pacman champion

)

Cheshire cat

):-(

nordic smiley; unsmiley big-face

):-)

impish smiley; smiley big-face

)8-)

scuba smiley big-face

*!#*!^*&:-)

a schizophrenic

**

for winter sports generally

*-(

a Cyclops poked in the eye

*-)

shot dead; stoned

*:*

fuzzy

*:**

message about fuzzy people with a fuzzy mustache

*:o)

and Bozo the clown!

*<.'v

(profile) wearing snow cap

*<:-)

wearing a Santa Claus hat; Santa Claus

*<|:-)

Santa Claus (Ho Ho Ho)

*<|:-))

Santa Claus

*<8-)X

party outfit with hat and bow-tie

*|

for oh what a beautiful sunset

*8-)

Beaker (the Muppet lab assistant)

*L*

blotto

+-(

shot between the eyes

+-(:-)

Religious leader; the Pope

+-:-)

priest; the Pope or holding some other religious office

+:-)

priest smiley

+<.'v

(profile) knight

+<:-)

"Peace be upon you, my children..."

+<:-|

message from a monk/nun

+<||-)

knight

+O:-)

the Pope

-

Helen Keller

- @=

messages about nuclear war

- -:-(

punk rocker (real punk rockers don't smile) (alternate version)

- -:-)

punk rocker (alternate version)

- @=

message about nyclear war

-(

always should wear safety glasses, especially in the laser burn-in room

-)

always wear safety glasses; Jose Feliciano

---...

SOS (variant)

---...---

SOS (really OSO, but retained anyway)

---<--{(@

It is a rose!

--->----

a rose

-:-(

punk rocker (real punk rockers don't smile)

-:-)

has mohawk; punk rocker; sports a mohawk and admires Mr. T

-=

a doused candle (to end a flame)

-=#:-)

wizard

-=* :-)

a TeX wizard

->-

for airline tickets going cheap

->=:-)X

Zippy the Pinhead

.'!

(profile) grim

.'"

(profile) pursing lips

.'\

(profile) frowning

.'J

(profile) smiling

.'P

(profile) sticking tongue out

.'r

(profile) sticking tongue out

.'T

(profile) keeping a straight face

.'U

(profile) yawning

.'V

(profile) shouting

.'v

(profile) talking

.'w

(profile) speaking with forked tongue

.'Y

(profile) whistling

.-(

always should wear safety glasses

.-)

keeping an eye out; one-eyed; Sammy Davis, Jr.

.-]

one eye

..-)

only has one eye

..-]

one-eyed smiley

...---...

S.O.S

.\/

Duck; duck variation

.^)

side view

.^v

(profile) pointy nose

._)

suffering from Lorentz contraction (they're coming every ten minutes now)

/:-)

French

/:-|

Mr. Spock

/;-)

has one big thick cockeyed eyebrow

/\

for camping and backpacking

/8^{~

hair line, glasses, moustache, and goatee

/8^{~<

hair line, glasses, moustache, and goatee

:,(

crying

: )

leper

: =

beaver smiley

:###)

Jimmy Durante

:#)

drunk smiley

:$)

Donald Trump

:%)

an accountant

:%)%

has acne

:'''-)

floods of tears

:'-(

crying

:'-)

crying with happiness; so happy, s/he is crying

:'}

Richard Nixon

:'O

Bob Hope

:(

sad; sad-turtle smiley

:)

cheshire cat smile; happy; midget smiley; salamander

:) :-) :>

Smiling, happy faces; don't take me too seriously

:*

kisses

:*)

drunk smiling face, for those of us who like get intoxicated before or while reading netnews; Ed McMahon; everyman; smiley with moustache; drunk (red nose); clowning around

:+(

punched nose, hurt

:+)

Carl Friedrich Gauss; large nose

:-,

"Hmmmm."; smirking

:-

male; prolog programmer

:-!

foot in mouth; smiley bland face

:-"

heavy smoker; pursing lips; whistling smiley

:-#

mouth zipped; my lips are scaled; fat lip; wears braces; message concerning something that shouldn't have been said; moustache; punched in the mouth

:-#)

happy with a mustache

:-#|

smiley face with bushy mustache

:-$

smiley face with it's mouth wired shut; message indicating person is ill; uncertainty

:-%

banker; bearded; talking out of both sides of mouth

:-&

smiley which is tongue-tied; message indicating person is angry

:-'

smoker

:-')

has a cold

:-'|

has a cold

:-(

un-smiley; sad face, "that comment makes me sad (mad)"; boo hoo; drama; frowning smiley (anger or displeasure); did not like that last statement or is upset or depressed about something; sad, angry, mad; has read too many 'smiley' articles

:-( )

You backed your car over my toe

:-( :-

impotent (or let down)

:-( )

You Just Backed Your Car Over My Toe! You stepped on my toe

:-( :-

impotent

:-(#)

wearing braces (teeth)

:-((

very sad

:-()

I stubbed my toe; talking

:-(*)

that comment made me sick; sick of recent netnews and is about to vomit

:-(=)

bucktooth smiley; big teeth

:-(0)

yelling

:-(O)

yelling

:-) ,

outie belly button

:-)

basic smiley (is used to inflect a sarcastic or joking statement); smiley standard; comedy; humorous; ha ha; smiling; happy face; don't take me too seriously; 'This is a joke' or 'This is supposed to make you laugh'

:-) .

innie belly button

:-) <

slut

:-) < ... :-) < ... :-) < ...

nymphomaniac

:-) >

celibate

:-) 8

Dolly Parton

:-) -:

smiley with an erection

:-) -^-:

in need of some corrective surgery

:-) -8

blue balls

:-) :-...

taking a leak

:-) )-:

masking theatrical comments

:-) ---

John Holmes

:-) ... :-( ... :-) ... :-( ...

manic depressive

:-) :-) :-)

loud guffaw

:-) 8 -

female

:-)!!!

Sam Kinnison

:-)'

drooling or dribbling; tends to drool

:-))

double chin; very happy

:-)))

laughing or double Chin; very overweight; William Conrad

:-)--

98-pound weakling

:-)-{8

big girl

:-)-}8

big girl

:-)-8

big girl

:-)-O

smiling doctor with stethoscope

:-)=

vampire

:-)==

Arnold Schwarzenegger

:-)>

bearded

:-)}

has goatee/beard

:-)~

drooling

:-)8

man with bowtie; well dressed

:-)8<

big girl smiley

:-)X

wearing a bowtie

:-*

kiss; just ate something bitter or sour; just ate a sour pickle; sorry, I didn't want to say that

:-*

Oops! (covering mouth with hand)

:-*)

has a cold

:--)

Jamie Farr (Klinger from M*A*S*H)

:------------)

big liar

:----}

you lie like pinnochio

:-/

lefty undecided smiley; perplexed, skeptical or undecided smiley; skeptical

:-:

mutant smiley; the invisible smiley; toothless

:-<

real sad smiley; frowning face; walrus smiley; moustache; vampire

:-=)

older smiley with mustache; Adolph Hitler

:->

hey hey; devilish grin (heavy sarcasm); just made a really biting sarcastic remark [worse than a :-) or ;-)]; normal smiling face with deformed lips (person who submitted it has problems with their lips); happy

:->X==|

smiley formalware

:-?

pipe smoker

:-@

screaming smiley; extremely angry; beard has permanent wave *or* was drawn by Picasso; "I swear"; swearing

:-[

un-smiley blockhead; vampire smiley; biting criticism; pouting; sarcastic

:-\

undecided smiley; popeye smiling face (for people who look like popeye)

:-\ 8o

after a cold shower

:-]

biting sarcasm smiling face, used when sarcasm is intended, since we cannot inflect our voice over the net; blockhead; vampire

:-`

smiley spitting out its chewing tobacco

:-{

mustache; smiley variation on a theme

:-{ -__-:

after slamming the toilet seat

:-{#}

from a person with braces; messages teasing people about their braces

:-{)

normal smiling face with a moustache

:-{}

heavy lipstick

:-{~

has read too many of the toilet paper articles previous to lunch

:-|

"have an ordinary day" smiley; indifference; monkey; no expression face ('that comment doesn't phase me'); grim

:-| 8( )-

pregnant female

:-|<

vampire

:-||

angry

:-|K-

formal message

:-}

beard; wry smile; normal smiling face with pretty lips (person that submitted it is wearing lipstick or some other lip appearance improving device); "Thish wine tashted pretty good"

:-} -oo-:

taking matters into hand

:-}X

bow tie-wearing smiley

:-~)

has a cold

:-0

no yelling! (quiet lab); smiley orator; shocked; can't find shift key

:-1

smiley bland face

:-3

handlebar mustache smiley; has eaten a lemon

:-6

smiley after eating something sour or spicy; sour taste in mouth

:-7

smiley after a wry statement; smirking smiley; smokes a pipe; talking out of side of mouth

:-8

talking out both sides of your mouth

:-8(

condescending stare

:-9

smiley licking it's lips

:-a

lefty smiley touching tongue to nose

:-B

drooling

:-b

left-pointing tongue smiley; tongue stuck out

:-c

bummed out smiley; very unhappy

:-C

just totally unbelieving; real unhappy smiley; really bummed; jaw hit floor

:-D

big smile; said with a smile; laughing (at you!); shock or surprise; talks too much; wider happy face (or mouth open too much)

:-d

lefty smiley razzing you; said with a smile

:-d~

smokes heavily

:-E

bucktoothed vampire; has major dental problems

:-e

disappointed smiley

:-F

bucktoothed vampire with one tooth missing

:-f

sticking tongue out

:-G-

smoking cigarettes

:-I

hmm; thinking; indifferent (or sad) smiley (better than a frowning smiley but not quite as good as a happy smiley)

:-i

semi-smiley; smoker

:-II

angry

:-j

left smiling smiley; smoker smiling

:-J

tongue-in-cheek comments

:-k

beats me, looks like something, though

:-l

yet another smiley

:-M

speaking no evil

:-o

"Oh, nooooooo!" (a la Mr. Bill); smiley singing national anthem; surpised/shocked; yell; Wow!

:-O

birth; Mr. Bill; ohh; big mouth; Mick Jagger; talkaktive smiley; Uh oh! Wow! Oops; surprised/shocked; yell; yawn

:-o ^^^^:

after zipping up fly too fast

:-O>-o

smiley American tourist (note big mouth and camera)

:-P

has a secret to tell you; sticking out tongue; tongue hanging out in anticipation; Nyahhhh!

:-p

smiley sticking its tongue out (at you!) (symbol of disrespect); tongue in cheek; wry smile

:-p~

smokes heavily

:-q

smiley trying to touch its tongue to its nose

:-Q

smoker; smoking

:-Q~

smoking

:-r

smiley raspberry; sticking tongue out

:-R

has the flu

:-s

after a BIZARRE comment

:-S

just made an incoherent statement; what you say makes no sense

:-t

cross smiley; pouting smiley

:-T

keeping a straight face (tight-lipped)

:-V

shouting smiley

:-v

talking head smiley; speaking

:-W

speak with forked tongue

:-w

speak with forked tongue

:-x

"My lips are sealed" smiley; kiss kiss; kissing; not telling any secrets

:-X

a big wet kiss; bow tie; lips are sealed; mute

:-x}

kissing

:-Y

a quiet aside

:-y

said with a smile

:-Z

sleeping

:-z

yet another cross smiley

:.-(

weeping

:.-)

laughing tears

:/)

not funny

:/\)

extremely bignosed smiley

:/7)

Cyrano de Bergerac

:/i

no smoking

::-)

wears normal glasses

:<

midget unsmiley; What? What pretences!

:<()

African tribesman

:<)

from an Ivy League school; moustache

:<)=

for those with beards too

:<=

walrus

:<|

attends an Ivy League school

:= |

baboon

:=)

orangutan smiley; has two noses

:=8)

baboon

:>

hmm, let me think...; midget smiley; What?

:>)

has a big nose

:?)

philosopher

:@

What?

:@)

pig

:[

real downer

:]

gleep (a friendly midget smiley who will gladly be your friend)

:^(

has had his nose put out of joint; useful for replying to flames

:^)

smiley with a personality; smiley with pointy nose (righty); alternate nose; broken nose; from a person with a large nose; 3/4 view of person with elf-type sharp nose; happy profile; messages teasing people about their noses

:^)#

happy with a beard

:^)##

happy with a long beard

:^{

for those with moustaches

:^{)>

moustache and beard

:^D

"Great! I like it!"

:_)

nose is sliding off of his face

:{

oh boy, the headmaster!...; What?

:}

What should we call these? (what?)

:~(

nose put out of joint

:~)

smiling face needs a nosejob, no explanation necessary; Peter Ubberoth; pointy nose (righty); ugly nose

:~-(

crying

:~-)

so happy, s/he is crying

:~/

really mixed up

:3-<

a dog

:8)

pigish smiley; a pig

:C

What?

:c)

big nose variant

:c<

big nose variant

:D

laughter

:D :-D

wider happy face (or Mistrel singers)

:I

Hmmm, not funny!

:I)

smiley with septum pierce

:n)

smiley with funny-looking right nose

:O

yelling

:o)

boxer's nose

:q

vi user saying, "How do I get out of this damn emacs editor?"

:Q

What?

:Q)

John Q. Public

:u)

smiley with funny-looking left nose

:Ui

smoking

:Uj

smoking (and smiling)

:V

woodpecker

:v)

left-pointing nose smiley; has a broken nose, but it's the other way

:V)

woodpecker

:X)

hearing no evil

;(

crying

;) ;-) ;>

Winking happy faces (something said tongue-in-cheek)

;-(

crying smiley; sad face gets his lights punched out, sad or mad and got beat up, or "That makes me so mad that if I ever see you I'll punch your lights out!"

;-)

winking smiley; light sarcasm; winking happy face (something said tongue-in-cheek); "Take this message with a grain of salt!"; just made a flirtatious and/or sarcastic remark (more of a "Don't hit me for what I just said!" smiley); a practical joker who played one too many and got beat up; crying with happiness; getting fresh; sardonic incredulity; smiling face gets his lights punched out; could be pirate smiling face??

;-) ===8

circumcised

;-) o===8

braggart

;-)=)

grin

;-)}<////>

corporate-type guy (see the necktie?)

;-\

Popeye beaten up; popeye gets his lights punched out

;-|

no expression face gets his lights punched out, says nothing but still gets beat up; beaten up but silent

;-}

leer? (terminal dependent)

;-D

a friendly, winking, laughing smile

;^)

smirking smiley

;^?

punched out

<&&>

message concerning rubber chickens

<*:oDX

clown with bowtie and dunce

<:-(

disappointed; dunce

<:-)

dumb question; stupid question (donkey's hat); Vietnamese peasant

<:-)<<|

in a space rocket; message from a space rocket

<:-I

a dunce

<:-O

Eeek!

<:>==

a turkey emoticon

<:3

simple smiley mouse or rat

<:3 )~~~~

smiley mouse or rat

<:I

dunce

<<<<(:-)

message from a hat salesman

<=

for messages about housing in the Snow Belt

<{:-)}

in a bottle; message in a bottle

<|-(

Chinese and doesn't like these kind of jokes

<|-(=

Chinese and doesn't like this article; Chinese and unhappy

<|-)

Chinese

<|-)=

Chinese

<3

heart

<g>

grin

<I==I)

on four wheels

=)

variation on a theme

=):-)

Uncle Sam

=.'v

(profile) has mohawk

=:-#}

punk rocker with a mustache

=:-(

punk rocker (real punk rockers don't smile)

=:-)

smiley punk-rocker; a hosehead; shocked

=:-H

football player; plays for NFL

==#==

railroad crossings

===:[OO']>:===

has been railroaded

=====:}

snake

=|:-)

Abe Lincoln

=|:-)=

Abe Lincoln

=0==

Mexican on a railroad!

=t==

Mexican run over by train

>-

female

>-<

absolutely livid!!

>->

china man

>-^);>

fish

>:)

a little devil

>:*)

Bozo the Clown

>:-(

mad, annoyed; sick and tired of reading this nonsense

>:-( 8 *>-

for disparaging opinions on feminists]

>:-)

devil; evil grin

>:-<

mad

>:->

devilish smiley; just made a really devilish remark; happy with a crew cut

>:-b

left-pointing tongue smiley

>:-I

net.startrek

>:-l

klingon smiley

>:^(

a headhunter (Amazon style)

>;-)

devilish wink

>;->

a very lewd remark was just made; winky and devil combined

>< ><

message about/to someone wearing argyle socks

>>-O->

Gen. Custer

>>>>>:============

an asparagus

>[I

Television

>|(

Robocop: "Thank you for your co-operation."

>|->

Chinese

>w

nose-thumbing gesture

?-(

message about people with a black eye; sorry, I don't know what went wrong

?-)

sorry, I don't know what went wrong

@%&$%&

You know what that means...

@%&$%&$\&*@%$#@

You know what that means...

@*&$!%

You know what that means...

@-(

"Ulysses! Bring me Ulysses!"

@-)

Cyclops

@.'v

(profile) has curly hair

@:-)

smiley wearing a turban; Arab; Indian (East); from a person with wavy hair

@:-}

smiley just back from the hairdresser

@:I

turban

@=

pro-nuclear war; flame about nuclear war, power or weapons follows (mushroom cloud)

@>--->----

a rose

@l@

too many hours at terminal

@O=E<=

woman in skirt wearing turtleneck sweater

[:-)

smiley wearing a walkman; wearing headphones

[:-]

robot; square head

[:]

robot smiley

[:|]

robot (or other AI project)

[=

for messages about housing in Arizona

[]

hugs

[8-{)

bearded smiley with glasses and headphones

\/\/\/\,8-O

really should fix frayed line cord on terminal

\:-)

french hat

\:^)

gumby smiley

\o/

PTL (praise the lord, or pass the loot?)

]-I

smiley wearing sunglasses (cool... Therefore no smile, only a smirk)

]:-)

the devil

]:->

the devil

^(^

happy variation

^)^ ^(^

two people talking

^L^

happy

^o

snoring

^v^v^

mountains

_:^)

an American Indian

_\\//

Vulcan salute

__.

properly chastised and/or chagrined, or is merely asleep

__/~`-'~\_/

line of thought isn't quite a line

__Q~`__

cat

_O-)

aquanaut

_o-)

aquanaut

`'

cat's eyes in the night

`:-)

shaved one of his eyebrows off this morning

{

Alfred Hitchcock

{ :-)

Marge Simpson (Homer's wife)

{(:-)

wearing toupee

{:-)

smiley wears a toupee; smiley with its hair parted in the middle; new hair style; wig

{:-{)}

new hair style, mustache and beard

{:\/

sounds like a duck

{:^=(

Adolph Hitler

{:V

duck

{=

for messages about housing

{{-}}}

refugee from the '60's

{}

'no comment'

{0-)

message from cyclops

|

for bike fleet messages

|)

a salamander

|-(

smiley lost his contact lenses; late night messages; asleep with nightmares; asleep (boredom)

|-)

hee hee; happy Oriental; sleeping; falling asleep (or is chinese)

|-<>

kissy face

|-]

robocop

|-{

"Good Grief!" (Charlie Brown?)

|-0

yawning

|-D

ho ho

|-I

sleeping

|-O

birth; yawning/snoring; bored

|-P

reaction to unusually ugly C code; yuk

|:-)

bushey eyebrows; heavy eyebrows

|:-|

excessively rigid

|:-O

(no explanation given)

|:['

Groucho Marx

|^o

snoring

||

for messages about cars or other four-wheeled vehicles

||*

handshake

||*(

handshake offered

||*)

handshake accepted

|~(

"Someone just busted my nose"

|I

asleep

}(:-(

wearing toupee in wind

}-)

evil

}.

an elephant

}:-(

toupee in an updraft; bull headed

}:-)

wearing toupee in an updraft; hair parted in the middle in an updraft

}:-<

cat

}:^#)

pointy nosed smiley

}:^#})

mega-smiley (updrafted bushy-mustached pointy nosed smiley with a double-chin)

}:~#})

mega-smiley: updrafted bushy-mustached pointy nosed smiley with a double-chin

}}\/=oo---oo

Crash! Semi-truck after collision

~ :-(

particularly angry

~'v

(profile) has long bangs

~:-(

net.flame

~:-P

thinking and steaming or having only one single hair

~=

a candle, to annotate flaming messages

~==

flame follows (picture of a lit match or candle)

~~:-(

net.flame

~~\8-O

needs to fix frayed cord on computer/terminal

~~~\8-O

zapped by frayed cord on computer/terminal

~~~~~8}

snake

~~~~8}

snake

~~~c___

beach

~M`'~

camel

0-(

scuba diver with a broken mask

0-)

smiley cyclops; wearing scuba mask; scuba diver; arc-welder

0:-)

angel; saint

2B|^2B

message about Shakespeare

3 :-)

Bart Simpson

3 :-)

Bart Simpson

3:*>

Rudolph the reindeer

3:-)

cow

3:-o

cow

3:[

mean pet smiley; pit bull smiley

3:]

lucy my pet dog smiley; pet smiley

3:o[

net.pets

4:-)

George Washington

5:-)

Elvis Presley

6\/)

elephant

7:)

Ronald Reagan

7:-)

Fred Flintstone

7:^]

Ronald Reagan

8

infinity

8 :-)

wizard

8 :-I

net.unix-wizards

8(:-)

mickey mouse; Walt Disney; Mousketeer

8)

frog

8*)

glasses and a moustache

8-#

dead smiley; death

8-)

(sun) glasses; smiley swimmer; smiley with big eyes, perhaps wearing contact lenses; wide-eyed look; excited; gorilla; smiling, happy face, also used to denote wide-eyed look

8-*

just ate a hot pepper

8->

just happy

8-]

"wow, maaan"

8-|

eyes wide with surprise; suspense

8-O

"Omigod!!" (done after "rm -rf *"); took too many nodoz to work on thesis

8-O --*

just before doubling over with pain

8-P

reaction to College Cafeteria Coffee

8:)

pig

8:-)

glasses on forehead; little girl smiley

8:]

gorilla

8<:-)

smiley is a wizard

8=:-)

chef; Galloping Gourmet

8===>

dickhead

8^

chicken

8^#)#

happy with a beard and mustache

8^(

sad

8^|

grim

8_)

don't get your nose out of joint

8b

bullfrog in mating season

8P

bullfrog in mating season

B)

frog wearing sunglasses

B-(8

Sir Robin Day (a British BBC TV presenter, famed for his grumpy countenance, and who wears glasses and a bow tie)

B-)

horn-rims; horn-rimmed glasses; smiley wears (sun) glasses; message from Batman; "Let's do the beach, man!"

B-)-[<

sunglasses and swimming trunk

B-|

cheap sunglasses

B-D

"Serves you right, dummy!!"

B:-)

sunglasses on head

B^)

hornrimmed glasses

BI

a frog

C):-O
C):-O
C):-O
C):-O

a barbershop quartet

C:#

football player

C:-)

large brain capacity

C=:-)

chef smiley; the Galloping Gourmet

C=>8*)

devilish chef with glasses and a moustache

C=}>;*{))

mega-smiley... a drunk, devilish chef with a toupee in an updraft, a mustache, and a double chin

C=}>;*{O)

mega-smiley... a drunk, devilish chef with a toupee in an updraft, a mustache, and a double chin

C|:-)

wearing a bowler hat

C|:-=

Charlie Chaplin

d :-o

hats off to your great idea

d.'v

(profile) wearing hard hat

d:-)

baseball player; wearing a cap

d8=

your pet beaver is wearing goggles and a hard hat

E-:-)

ham radio operator

E-:-I

net.ham-radio

EK(

Frankenstien

g-)

wearing pince-nez glasses

H-)

cross-eyed smiley

Honk! oo---oo-Bo

semi-truck moving right

i-)

private eye (detective)

i-=<*** __.

CAUTION: has flame thrower and uses it!

i-=<****** o-(==<

CAUTION: has flame thrower and uses it!

i-=<***i

CAUTION: has flame thrower

K:P

a little kid with a propeller beenie

l-O

smiley is yawning

L-P

totally scrambled smiley (that's why L-P mud exists...)

L:-)

just graduated

l:-O

flattop loudmouth smiley

l^o

hepcat smiley

M-)

sees no evil

M-) :X) :-M

sumbitter sees no evil, hears no evil, speaks no evil

M:-)

saluting (symbol of respect)

O :-)

an angel (at heart, at least)

O |-)

net.religion

O 8-)

the angelic halo look

O+

appropriate for women's messages, surely?

O-&-<

doing nothing

O-(==<

chastised and/or chagrined, or is merely asleep

o-)

Cyclops

O-)

megaton man on patrol! scuba diver; message from cyclops; smiley after smoking a banana

o-<:-{{{

santa

O-G-<

pointing to self

O-S-<

in a hurry

O-Z-<

in a big hurry

o/

raised hand

O:-)

angel smiley; halo; smiley face with halo - acting very innocent

O:O

a girl is mooning you

o=

a burning candle (for flames)

O>-<|=

messages of interest to women

o>8<|=

messages about interesting women

oF-oo---oo

semi-truck moving left

oo

"Somebody's head-lights are on" messages

OO

headlights on message

oo-

puzzled, confused

ouch... O>--<

dead driver/passenger on pavement

P-(

pirate smiley

P-)

Colonel Klink (Hogan's Heroes); getting fresh

pp#

cow

pq`#'

bull

Q:-)

new graduate

q:-)

wearing baseball cap backwards

R-)

broken glasses

V^J

smiley with glasses, seen from the left side (portrait, talking)

X-(

net.suicide; just died; you are brain dead

X-)

cross eyed; unconscious

X:-)

little kid with a propeller beanie

ABBREVIATIONS

@

Circle A (symbol for anarchy)

2nite

tonight

2U2

to you, too

AAMOF

as a matter of fact

ADN

any day now

AFAIK

as far as I know

AFK

away from keyboard

AFU

all fucked up

AKA

also known as

AMF

Adios, motherfucker!

AOL

army of lamers

ASAP

as soon as possible

ATM

at the moment

AWGTHTGTTA?

are we going to have to go through this again?

B-D

breakdown

b/c (BK)

because

B4

before

B4N

bye for now

BAC

by any chance

BAK

back at keyboard

BAMF

bad assed motherfucker

BBFN

bye bye for now

BBL

be back later

BBR

burnt beyond repair

BCNU

be seeing you

BFH

big fucking hammer

BFN

bye for now

BIOYA

blow it out your ass

BIOYIOP

blow it out your I/O port

BOT

back on topic

BRB

be right back

BRS

big red switch (hacker term)

BTA

but then again (in response to IOW)

BTDTGTS

been there, done that, got the T-shirt

BTL

better than life

BTSOOM

beats the stuffing out of me

BTTH

boot to the head

BTW

by the way

BYKT

but you know that

BYOH

bat you onna head

BYORL

bring your own rocket launcher

C4N

ciao for now

CFD

call for discussion

CFV

call for vote

CMIIW

correct me if I'm wrong

cos(cuz)

because

CRAFT

can't remember a fucking thing

CU

see you

CUL(8R)

see you later

CYA

see ya; cover your ass

D-C

don't care

d00d

dude

DAMIFINO

damn if I know

DARFC

ducking and running for cover

DETLA

double extended three letter abbreviation

dewd

dude

DFL

dead fucking last

DH

dear husband, dear hubby, duh hubby and of course dick head

DIIK

damned if I know

DILLIGAF?

Do I look like I give a fuck? (Does it look like I give a fuck?)

DIY

do it yourself

DOM

dirty old man

DTRT

do the right thing

DWIM(C)

do what I mean (, correctly)

DYJHIW

don't you just hate it when

DYK

do you know

DYT

do you think

EFN (E4N)

enough for now

eg

evil grin

EOD

end of discussion

EOF

end of file

EOL

end of lecture

EOT

end of transmission; end of thread (i.e., don't reply to this message)

ESAD (ES&D)

eat shit and die

ESADMF

eat shit and die mother fucker

ETLA

extended three letter acronym

EZ

easy

F2F (FTF)

face-to-face (as IRL); flesh to flesh

FAQ

frequently asked questions

FETLA

further extended three letta acronym (i.e. it has five letters)

FFRD

flying fuck in a rolling donut (I don't give one)

FHOF

freeware hall of fame

FISH

first in, still here

FITB

fill in the blank _________

FLA

four/five letter abbreviation (ETLA and DETLA are preferred since they are self-referential)

FOAD

fuck off & die

FOAF

friend of a friend

FOOBAR

variant of FUBAR (q.v.)

FOS

freedom of speech; full of shit

FRED

fucking ridiculous electronic device

FTTT

from time to time

FU

fucked up

FUBAB

fucked up beyond all belief

FUBAR

fucked up beyond all reason/recognition/repair

FUD

fear, uncertainty and doubt

FURTB

full up ready to burst (about hard disk drives!)

FWIW

for what it's worth

FY&TSYRIO

fuck you and the sysop you rode in on

FYA

for your amusement

FYDITM

fuck you directly in the mouth

FYI

for your information

G

grin (as in <g>)

GA

go ahead

GAFIA

get away from it all

GAL

get a life

gawd

god

gbh

great back hug

gbh&k

great back hug & kiss

gd&r

grinning, ducking and running

gd&rf

grinning, ducking and running FAST!

gd&rvvf

grinning, ducking and running VERY VERY FAST!

gd&w

grinning, ducking and weaving

GFC

going for coffee

GFR

grim file reaper (pervasive data destroyer)

GH

getting hard (q.v. GW)

GIGO

garbage in, garbage out

GIWIST

gee, I wish I'd said that

GLGH

good luck and good hunting

GMTA

great minds think alike

GOK

god only knows

gr&d

grinning, running & ducking

GRMBL

grumble

grrlz

girls

GTG

got to go

guvment

government

GW

getting wet (q.v. GH)

h

hug

HAB

hot Asian babe

HAND

have a nice day

hb

hug back

hh

holding hands

HHOJ

ha ha only joking

HHOK

ha ha only kidding

HHOS

ha ha only serious

HIWTH

hate it when that happens

HMOFG (HMFG)

holy mother of fucking god

HTH

hope this helps

HYCFAPMSFTJ

honestly you couldn't find a person more suited for the job

IAC

in any case

IAE

in any event

IANAL

I am not a lawyer

IAP

it's a possibility

IC

I see

ICBW

I could be wrong

IDGI

I don't get it

IDK

I don't know

IDM2M

it doesn't matter to me

IDTT

I'll drink to that!

IHTFP

I have truly found paradise; I hate this fuckin' place

IIRC

if I recall correctly

IITYWIMIWHTKY

if I tell you what it means, I will have to kill you

IITYWIMWYBMAD

if I tell you what it means, will you buy me a drink?

ILTNMMAMOTC.

I'd like to nominate Mike Meyer as moderator

ILY

I love you

IMAO

in my arrogant opinion

IMCO

in my considered opinion

IME

in my experience

IMHO

in my humble opinion

IMnerHO

in my not even remotely humble opinion

IMNSHO

in my not so humble opinion

IMO

in my opinion

IMOBO

in my own biased opinion

IMPE

in my previous/personal experience

IMVHO

in my very humble opinion

INAP

it's not a possibility

INPO

in no particular order

IOW

in other words

IRL

in real life

ISTR

I seem to recall

ISWYM

I see what you mean

IWBNI

it would be nice if

IYFEG

insert your favorite ethnic group

IYKWIM

if you know what I mean

IYKWIMAITYD

if you know what I mean and I think you do

IYTS

if you think so

J/K

just kidding (can also stand for joking)

J4F

just for fun

JASE

just another system error

JIC

just in case

JM2C

just my 2 cents

JS

just smile

JSNM

just stark naked magic

JTYWTK

just thought you wanted to know

K

1000 (like, 2K = 2000)

k

kiss

kb

kiss back

kewl

cool

KISS

keep it short and simple; keep it simple stupid

KMYF

kiss me you fool

kotc

kiss on the cheek

l

laugh

L8R

later

LAB&TYD

life's a bitch & then you die

LAGNAF

let's all get naked and fuck!

LART

luser attitude readjustment tool

li

laughing inside

lis

laughing in silence

LLTA

lots and lots of thunderous applause

LMAO

laughing my ass off

lmbo

laughing my butt off

LMWIS

lick me where I sweat

LOL

laughing out loud

MfG

Mit freundlichen Gruessen

MHBFY

my heart bleeds for you

MHOTY

my hat's off to you

MLA

multiple letter acronym

MORF

male or female

MOTAS

member of the appropriate sex

MOTOS

member of the opposite sex

MOTSS

member of the same sex

MYOB

mind your own business

n case

in case

n/a

not applicable

NBL

not bloody likely

NC

no comment

NFW

no fucking way

NHOH

never heard of him (her)

NIFOC

naked/nekkid in front of computer

NIMBY

not in my backyard

NN2R

no need to reply

NRN

no reply necessary

NSS

no shit, shylock

NTP

new topic, please

NYCTMI

now you come to mention it

OBTW

oh, by the way

OIC

oh, I see

OK

oll korrect

OnJo

only joking

ONNA

oh no, not again!

OOI

out of interest

OOO

out of office

OOTB

out of the box (brand new)

OOTC

obligatory on-topic comment

OT

off topic

OTF

on the floor

OTOH

on the other hand

OTTH

on the third hand

PABG

pack a big gun

PCMCIA

people can't memorize computer industry acronyms

PCYLIHOONL

please cross your legs, I have only one nail left

PDA

public display of affection

PDQ

pretty d**m(ed) quick(ly)

PITA

pain in the ass

PLOKTA

press lots of keys to abort

PMBI

pardon my butting in

PMETC

pardon me etc

PMFBI

pardon me for butting in

PMFJI

pardon me for jumping in

PMJI

pardon me, jumping in (when you interrupt a conversation)

POETS

piss of early tomorrows Saturday

POSSLQ

person of opposite sex sharing living quarters

potc

peck on the cheek

POV

point of view

PTB

powers that be

R&D

research and development

R&P

rape and pillage (excessive violence)

RE

regarding

REHI

hello again (re-Hi!)

RFC

request for comment

RFD

request for discussion

RFP

request for proposal

RO(T)FL

rolling on the floor laughing

ROFLMAO

rolling on the floor laughing my ass off

ROTFLAHMS

rolling on the floor laughing and holding my side

ROTM

right on the money

RSN

real soon now

RTDox

read the documentations

RTFAQ

read the FAQ

RTFFAQ

read the fucking FAQ

RTFM

read the fucking manual

RTM

read the manual

RUMOF

are you male or female?

s

smile

S&D

search and destroy

sb

smiles back

SBD

silent but deadly (fart) [Beavis & Butthead]

SBD

silent but deadly (fart) [George Carlin; also used by Beavis & Butthead]

SFAIAA

so far as I am aware

SFLA

stupid four letter acronym

SHIT

sure happy it's thursday

SHTSI

somebody had to say it

SIG

special interest group

SITD

still in the dark

SMO

serious mode on

SMOff

serious mode off

SMOP

small matter of programming

SNAFU

situation normal, all fucked up

SO

significant other (e.g. boyfriend, girlfriend, husband, wife, pet dog)

SOB

do you really need *me* to explain this one?

SOHF

sense of humor failure

SOL

shit outta luck

SOS

same old shit (or stuff)

SPAM

SPiced hAM. Hormel's canned meat

SRE

scully rational explanation

SSDD

same shit different day

ST-TNG

Star Trek, The Next Generation

ST-TOS

Star Trek, The Original Series

STD

severe tire damage (rows of spikes on road)

STI/ST-TMP

Star Trek, first movie/The Motion Picture

STII/ST-WOK

Star Trek, second movie/'Wrath of Khan'

STIII/ST-SFS

Star Trek, third movie/'Search for Spock'

STIV/ST-TVH

Star Trek, fourth movie/'The Voyage Home'

STV/ST-TFF

Star Trek, fifth movie/'The Final Frontier'

STVI/ST-TUC

Star Trek, sixth movie/'The Undiscovered Country'

SW

shareware

SWAG

scientific wild ass guess

SWALK

sealed with a loving kiss

SWMBO

she who must be obeyed

SWWCFI

so what, who cares, fuck it

SYL

see you later

SYSOP

SYStem OPerator, aka god

T-P

telepathy

TAFN

that's all for now

TANJ

there ain't no justice

TANSTAAFL

there ain't no such thing as a free lunch

TARFU

things are really fucked up

TAZ

temporary autonomous zone; mobile or transient location free of economic and social interference by the state. [Hakim Bey]

TBT

talking by typing

TCB

trouble came back

TDM

too damn many

TGIF

thank god its friday

THX

thanks

TIA

thanks in advance

TIATLG

truly, I am the living god

tic

tongue in cheek

TID

thread is deteriorating (OT)

TINALO

this is not a legal opinion

TINAR

this is not a recomendation

TLA

three letter acronym

TLG

the living god

TNKU

thank you

TNSTAAFL

there's no such thing as a free lunch

TNX

thanks

TNX 1.0E6

thanks a million

to go nookleer

to explode

TPTB

the powers that be

TRDMC

tears running down my cheers

tripdub

www ("triple w")

troo

true

TRSZ

the red salamander zaruga

TSJD

Texas size jelly donut (official food of Texas sysops)

TSR

terminate and stay resident program

TTBOMK

to the best of my knowledge

TTFN

ta-ta for now

TTL4N

that's the lot for now

TTUL

talk (or type) to you later

TTYL(8R)

talk to you later

TUC

the ultimate chatlist!

TWIMC

to whom it may concern

TYVM

thank you very much

UAE

unrecoverable application error (bane of Windows' users!)

UCE

unsolicited commerical e-mail

UST

unresolved sexual tension [X-philes (fans)]

veg

very evil grin

ves

very evil smile

vwg

very wicked grin

vws

very wicked smile

w

wink

w/

with

w/o

without

w3b

www

WDYT

what do you think?

WFM

works for me

wg

wicked grin

WIIWD

what it is we do

WIMP

Windows, icons, mouse, pointing

wirld

world

WOFTAM

waste of flaming time and money

WRT

with regard (respect) ro

WTF

what the fuck

WTF R U ?

who the fuck are you?

WTFDIK

what the fuck do I know

WTH

what the hell

WTHDTM

what the hell does that mean

WTLOB

watch "the life of Brian"

wuz

was

WWDWIIWD

when we do what it is we do

WYGIWYPF

what you get is what you pay for

WYMM

will you marry me? (Currently restricted to alt.fan.pratchett AFAIK.)

wymyn

women

WYSIAYG

what you see is all you get

WYSIWYG

what you see is what you get

Xtian

christian

YABA

yet another bloody acronym

YABSA

yet another bloody stupid acronym

YGWYPF

you get what you pay for

YKYBHTLW

you know you've been hacking to long when

YKYHBxTLW

you know you have been x too long when (eg, YKYHBPDTLW - you know you have been playing Doom too long when...)

YMMV

your mileage may vary

YMMVG

your mileage may vary greatly

YWIA

you're welcome in advance