Emoticon (noun)

A group of keyboard characters, such as a colon and parenthesis, used to represent a facial expression or emotion in electronic communication.

Origin:

The word "emoticon" is a portmanteau of the words "emotion" and "icon" meaning a small image used to convey emotions or feelings in electronic messages.

Examples:

1. She used an emoticon to indicate that her message was meant to be humorous.
2. The emoticon :-) represents a smiling face.
3. He sent an emoticon of a winking face to indicate that he was joking.
4. The use of emoticons in electronic communication has become very popular in recent years.
5. Emoticons can help convey tone and emotion in electronic messages that may otherwise be ambiguous.