Basic Emoticons ("Smileys")

 

:-)	Your basic smiley. This smiley is used to inflect a sarcastic or joking statement since we can't hear voice inflection over e-mail.
;-)	Winky smiley. User just made a flirtatious and/or sarcastic remark. More of a "don't hit me for what I just said" smiley.
:-(	Frowning smiley. User did not like that last statement or is upset or depressed about something.
:-I	Indifferent smiley. Better than a :-( but not quite as good as a :-).
:->	User just made a really biting sarcastic remark. Worse than a ;-).
>:->	User just made a really devilish remark.

Common Abbreviations

For more acronyms, see the table of common acronyms designed by Richard Hanson.

A Beginner's Guide to Effective Email site offers more information on acronyms.