Where it comes from
The / is a raised arm and ~~ is a waving hand, often read as a fluttering handkerchief like someone seeing off a train. ^_^ is a happy, eyes-closed smile.
When to use it
Use it at the end of a chat, when logging off or seeing friends off on a trip. It's friendly enough for casual work chat, but it is light for formal emails.
Examples
- Heading out now, see you Monday (^_^)/~~
- Have a safe flight (^_^)/~~
Variants to copy
What it is made of
Every character in the face with its Unicode code point — handy if one shows up as a box on a friend's phone.
(
U+0028left parenthesis^
U+005Ecircumflex accent_
U+005Flow line)
U+0029right parenthesis/
U+002Fsolidus~
U+007Etilde