face with open mouth
Unicode: 1F62E
Description
A yellow circular face with a wide, open mouth, often with a slight curve, indicating surprise or a neutral, somewhat blank expression. It's sometimes depicted with very slightly raised eyebrows.
Group:
Smileys & Emotion > face-concerned
Status:
fully-qualified
Emotion:
Commonly represents surprise, awe, neutrality, or a vacant expression, often used when someone is speechless or dumbfounded. It can also be used to convey a 'blank stare' or 'no reaction' feeling.
Backstory
This emoji was introduced in Unicode 6.0 (2010). Its simple, open-mouthed design makes it versatile, allowing users to apply it to a range of situations from mild surprise to utter shock or simply a lack of words. It's part of the extensive set of facial expression emojis that quickly became integral to digital communication.
Usage Examples
- Expressing surprise: 'Wow, I didn't see that coming. 😮'
- Indicating a blank expression: 'My face when they explained quantum physics. 😮'
- Conveying speechlessness: 'I have no words... 😮'
- Reacting to something shocking: 'Did you hear what happened?! 😮'
Cultural Differences
Western culture:
Frequently used for genuine surprise or shock, sometimes with a comedic undertone of being dumbfounded or speechless. Less often conveys negative emotions.
East Asian culture:
Can be used for surprise, but also for a poker face, a blank expression, or even as a simple, less enthusiastic 'okay' or acknowledgment.