Overview
Interpretation
Overall feeling
(＾＾＃) is a classic “smiling but annoyed” kaomoji. At first glance it looks friendly and polite, yet the little full-width hash mark hints that something is clearly not okay. It feels like someone keeping a customer service smile while their patience is running out, or a friend who is jokingly angry but still trying to stay cute. The mood sits between mild irritation, playful scolding and passive-aggressive politeness. You can read it as “I’m mad, but I’m still being nice about it.”
Visual structure
- The outer parentheses form the outline of the face and keep the expression compact.
- The two
characters are curved, closed eyes, like a relaxed or smiling expression. They show that the character is not crying or panicking, just narrowing their eyes.＾＾ - There is no visible mouth, which makes the emotion rely more on the eyes and symbol. This gives a flat, unreadable smile feeling.
- The full-width
on the side is the key element. In manga language it stands for a popping anger vein, the classic mark that someone is irritated or about to snap.＃
Put together, (＾＾＃) looks like a person who is smiling with their eyes, but has an anger mark on their temple. The tension between soft eyes and sharp symbol creates the “smiling while angry” nuance.
Typical usage
You can use (＾＾＃) in many everyday chats:
- When someone keeps teasing you and you want to show you’re annoyed but still joking.
- When a friend is late again, forgot a promise, or repeats a bad habit.
- When you want to express polite frustration at work or in group projects without sounding harsh.
- When you are calling someone out lightly: “I saw that, don’t think I didn’t notice (＾＾＃).”
It works best in casual or semi-casual conversations where everyone understands that your irritation is mild and partly humorous, not genuine rage.
Usage guide
Tips
How to use (＾＾＃) naturally
The kaomoji (＾＾＃) is ideal when you are slightly annoyed but still in a joking, manageable mood. It lets you complain or scold without sounding harsh, because the smiling eyes soften the emotion while the anger mark hints that your patience has limits. Think of it as saying “I am smiling, but I mean this” in a playful way. Used well, it can keep conversations light while still setting a boundary.
When to use
- When a friend keeps teasing you with the same joke and you want to signal “okay, enough now”.
- When someone is late again or forgets something you reminded them about many times.
- When you want to respond to a silly or inconsiderate action with a mix of humour and criticism.
- When you need to nudge teammates or classmates who are slacking on a shared task.
- When you are mock-angry about something small, like losing a game because of a funny mistake.
Example phrases
- You said you would be here at 7, it is 7:30 already (＾＾＃)
- Stop using that cursed meme on me every day (＾＾＃)
- If you forget the file again tomorrow, I will really cry (＾＾＃)
- I saw you ate my snack from the fridge (＾＾＃)
Tips and notes
- Use (＾＾＃) mainly with people who understand your humour style; strangers may not read the nuance correctly.
- Avoid using it for serious conflicts or heavy topics, where a clear and calm message is better.
- Do not spam it in every sentence; using it at key moments makes your playful anger more noticeable.
Usage examples
Real conversation samples that feature this kaomoji.
Example 1
Example 2