你是一個(gè)表情符號(hào)的熱衷者嗎?你的短信、qq、msn和email聊天中常常使用各種表情嗎?今天我們要講的詞是emoticon。是不是覺得這個(gè)詞的構(gòu)成有幾分奇怪，幾分眼熟?沒錯(cuò)啦，其實(shí)它是emotion (or emote)和icon組成的混合詞。An emoticon is a symbol or combination of symbols to convey emotional content in written or message form. 就是說，我們可以把emotion叫做“表情符號(hào)”或者“表情符”，也就是把一些字母和符號(hào)放在一起做成的表情效果。
比如我們在電子郵件和短信當(dāng)中經(jīng)常用到的微笑表情smiley faces，或者嘴角下彎的沮喪表情，都是用引號(hào)、分號(hào)和括號(hào)這樣的符號(hào)組成的。
Common Examples:
Icon Meaning Icon Meaning Icon Meaning
:-) smile, happy
:-( sad, depressed
;-) wink
:-D big grin
:-P tongue out, happy, or being silly
:-* kiss
:-O surprised
:-/ uncertain
:-| waiting, indifferent
=] smile, happy
=[ sadness, depressed
=O shocked
:@ angry
:-S or
:-? confused
a: a-hole
接下來，我們看段兩個(gè)人有關(guān)表情符號(hào)的對話。
A: You know I always find it difficult to really express my emotions when I'm sending an instant message.
B: Well, why don't you use those emoticons more?
A: I could, yes, but I'm never really sure if they show the right emotion that I want to express.
B: Well, there are quite a lot of emoticons you can use: happy, sad, feeling mad! They express a lot of emotions.
A: Ok then, I'll have a go!
表情符號(hào)非常豐富，它們足以表達(dá)我們生活中的各種情緒。There's quite a bit of variety and you can express your emotions quite clearly, it's nearly as good as talking to them for real! 多多使用表情符號(hào)，讓我們的生活充滿更多色彩，更多歡樂!