[anoncake]

> Despite the potential for emoji to be interpreted in a wide array of ways, emoji experts don’t really exist. “Emoji usually have dialects. They draw meaning from their context. You could absolutely talk about emoji as a phenomenon, but as for what a particular emoji means, you probably wouldn’t go to a linguist. You would probably go to someone who’s familiar with that community, just like they did with the sex trafficking case,” Goldman says.

What does Goldman think linguists do when they research the meaning of words?

[cookieswumchorr]

emojis are not something strictly defined. They vary across messaging platforms and clients, or versions of clients. Sometimes it means that the person sending them sees a different image then the recepient, which also can lead do different interpretation

[sandworm101]

I'm reminded of the UK PM, David Cameron, who signed many emails "LOL". He though it meant 'lots of love'.

[anoncake]

The meaning of words also differs between dialects and even idiolects. If you ask one person what an emoji means, chances are they will tell you how they interpret it.