Emojis are a fun and harmless way to lighten up work communication, right? Yes… most of the time. But some of these pictograms are downright creepy if you send them to a co-worker.
Here are some of the worst examples you should absolutely never use, and a few emojis you should use only cautiously.
Why some emojis are too creepy for the workplace
There are a few emojis that absolutely everyone should know not to send to a co-worker unless you want to have a chat with HR. The eggplant, peach, tongue, water droplets and even some hand gestures are widely associated with sexual innuendo, regardless of your intent.
But some emojis can create problems in workplace communication because they carry double meanings or cultural interpretations that are not obvious to the sender.
Blink, a mobile-first employee experience platform, identified the most inappropriate emojis for workers to send to their co-workers.
Don’t use these creepy emoji at work
Graphic: Apple/Cult of Mac
At the top of the list is the smirking face 😏 because so many people think it’s sexual innuendo. And the emoji looks creepy. Plus, as Blink points out, lots of people don’t even know what the emoji is supposed to mean and end up Googling for an explanation. Or jump to a bad conclusion.
Avoid sending the winking face emoji 😉 to a co-worker. To many people, a wink is not an innocent gesture — it’s taken as flirtation.
As noted earlier, everyone should know not to use the tongue emoji at work. The same goes for the pictogram of a face sticking its tongue out 😛, and for the same reason.
The drooling face 🤤 also made Blink’s top 5 most inappropriate emojis to send to a co-worker. You might be simply saying you’re ready for lunch, but the emoji looks quite creepy — it’s not hungry for food.
And do not send the skull emoji 💀 to your co-workers. OK, maybe in a Happy Halloween message, but even then use it cautiously. Death isn’t something to talk about in the workplace, plus the emoji can be misinterpreted as a threat.
3 emoji to be cautious about sending co-workers
AI image: Gemin/Cult of Mac
Some of the emojis that Blink recommends avoiding aren’t obvious problems, but should only be used in the right circumstances. In other words, think carefully before putting them on Microsoft Teams.
The fire emoji 🔥 can be easily misinterpreted. When you say “Janet is 🔥” you could be saying “Janet is doing a great job on those quarterly reports” but it’s just as easily interpreted as “Janet looks smoking hot.”
The eyes emoji 👀 is in the same category. It’s easy for someone to think you mean that it’s time to ogle one of your co-workers — and decide you’re a creep.
The thank you emoji 🙏 is one of the most misinterpreted of all these pictograms. Many people think it indicates praying, and religion is another topic to be avoided at work.
A poor choice of emoji in a Slack conversation is a ridiculous reason to get dragged into an uncomfortable meeting with HR. And while you can argue that you didn’t intend to sexually harass a co-worker, or threaten their life, you don’t get to make the final decision about whether you get fired, HR does.
Know when not to use emoji at all
And make sure you’re aware that there are circumstances in which emoji should never be used. Formal communications involving executives, clients, legal matters, disciplinary actions, performance reviews, financial discussions or crisis situations should avoid emoji entirely.
A smiling face in a message about layoffs, a thumbs-up in response to a customer complaint or laughing emoji in a discussion about policy violations comes across as dismissive.
In the same vein, emoji are usually unsuitable in official reports, contracts, compliance notices and job offers in which clarity and professionalism matter most.
Using emoji in these circumstances might not get you fired, but it could prevent you from getting a promotion or a raise because you don’t know how to be professional, or you come across as someone who doesn’t take your job seriously.
Ed Hardy has been writing full-time about tech for 25 years, and using it for much longer than that. His intro to Apple was a Macintosh SE/30 (which he still has), but now he uses a 13-inch iPad Pro as his primary computer.
That’s because he’s a “tablet first” type of guy. Rather than use a Macbook, he connects a keyboard case to the iPad. And instead of a desktop Mac, he connects his tablet to a 27-inch display and full-size keyboard. (So don’t try to tell him that everyone has to use a Mac to be productive.)
Before coming to Cult of Mac, Ed wrote for NotebookReview, TabletPCReview and Brighthand, as well as other sites.
