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🥹

🥹 Holding Back Tears Emoji

:face_holding_back_tears:
Combos
0 found
Unicode
U+1F979

📖 What does face holding back tears mean?

A smiling face with upturned, glistening eyes on the very edge of tears — moved, overwhelmed, but not quite crying yet. The dual nature is what makes it so useful: it captures being deeply touched by gratitude, beauty, pride, or something unexpectedly sweet, while still holding it together with a smile. It's the emotional equivalent of "I'm not crying, you're crying" — and the person saying it is absolutely crying.

Added in Emoji 14.0 (2021), 🥹 quickly filled a gap that none of the existing crying emojis could. The emotion it represents isn't sadness — it's being genuinely overwhelmed by something wonderful. Compare it to 🥺 (puppy eyes, reaching outward, asking for something) and 😭 (full collapse, the ugly cry). 🥹 sits in the middle: moved by something that already happened, visibly struggling to contain it, but still technically upright.

Similar:😭loudly crying face🥺pleading face😢crying face🥲smiling face with tear😊smiling face with smiling eyes
holding back tearstouchedgratefuloverwhelmedsweetmovedemotional
Face holding back tears was approved as part of Unicode 14.0 in 2021 and added to Emoji 14.0 in 2021.

🔢 Technical Information

Emoji
🥹
Shortcode
:face_holding_back_tears:
Unicode Version
14.0 (2021)
Emoji Version
14.0 (2021)
Code Point
U+1F979

💻 Developer Codes

Code PointU+1F979
HTML Hex🥹
HTML Dec🥹
JavaScript\u{1F979}
CSS\1F979
URL Encoded%F0%9F%A5%B9

💬 How to Use 🥹

🥹They threw me a surprise party and I genuinely almost lost it 🥹
🥹The way he ran up and hugged me when I got home 🥹
🥹I am not crying at this dog video, I am not 🥹
🥹She remembered my coffee order after one time 🥹
🥹First paycheck from something I actually care about 🥹

🥹 Holding Back Tears vs 🥺 Pleading Face — What's the difference?

🥺 is the wanting face — big glossy eyes trained on you, asking for something, puppy-dog energy with a hint of manipulation in the best possible way. 🥹 is the receiving face — moved by something that already happened, tears welling up from gratitude or beauty rather than desire. 🥺 is reaching outward, hoping for something; 🥹 is holding inward, trying not to let it show. 🥺 wants; 🥹 is overwhelmed by what it already got.

🥺See pleading face emoji →

🗂️ More Concerned Faces Emojis

😕🫤😟🙁☹️😮😯😲😳🫪🥺😦😧😨
See all Concerned Faces emojis →

🔍 Related Emoji Pages

😭loudly crying face🥺pleading face😱face screaming in fear😢crying face😩weary face

❓ Frequently Asked Questions

What does the 🥹 emoji mean?
🥹 Face Holding Back Tears shows a smiling face with upturned, glistening eyes on the verge of spilling over. It captures the feeling of being deeply moved — by something beautiful, kind, or unexpectedly sweet — while still technically keeping it together. The smile is doing a lot of heavy lifting.
What does 🥹 mean in texting?
In texts, 🥹 signals genuine emotional overwhelm on the warm end of the spectrum — being touched, grateful, proud, or caught off guard by something wonderful. It's the emoji for 'this is so sweet I can't handle it' or 'I am not tearing up, except I absolutely am.'
What's the difference between 🥹 and 🥺?
The direction of the emotion. 🥺 Pleading Face is outward-facing: asking, wanting, hoping for something to happen. 🥹 is inward: something has already happened and it hit harder than expected. 🥺 is pre-feeling; 🥹 is mid-feeling, trying to suppress it.
What's the difference between 🥹 and 😭?
Containment. 😭 Loudly Crying Face has given up the fight — tears streaming, mouth open, the full ugly cry. 🥹 is still holding on, smile still present, but just barely. 🥹 is the moment before 😭 happens, if the person is strong enough to resist.
Is 🥹 a positive or sad emoji?
Positive, almost always. The emotion it captures — being moved, touched, overwhelmed with gratitude or sweetness — sits on the warm and happy side of the spectrum. The near-tears are from beauty or kindness, not grief or disappointment.
When was 🥹 added?
🥹 was added in Emoji 14.0, released in September 2021, and became widely available on iOS and Android through 2022.
How do I copy the 🥹 holding back tears emoji?
Click the Copy button at the top of this page. The emoji is instantly copied to your clipboard.