emoticon
noun [ C ]
COMMUNICATIONS uk/ɪˈməʊtɪkɒn/ usa sideways image of a face formed by keyboard symbols, which is used in emails to express a particular emotion, for example :-) to express happiness, or :-( to express sadness:
The smiley face and other emoticons give a concise way of expressing sentiments that otherwise would be difficult to detect in e-mail.