Cat with tears of joy emoji 😹 (laughing cat)
😹 is the cat with tears of joy: the cat-face version of 😂 face with tears of joy, laughing so hard it cries.
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What the cat with tears of joy 😹 (laughing cat) emoji means
😹 is the cat with tears of joy: the cat-face version of 😂 face with tears of joy, laughing so hard it cries. It means “that’s hilarious” with a playful, slightly ironic edge — people choose the cat when 😂 feels overused, when the joke is about a cat, or simply because cat faces are their thing. It is one of the nine cat faces on the cat emoji guide, and the only one that laughs. Its sad opposite is 😿 crying cat.
Unicode name: cat with tears of joy · U+1F639 · Emoji 0.6 (original set) · group: Smileys & Emotion.
How people use it
- Laughing: memes, fails, jokes
- Cat videos: the obvious caption
- Ironic 😂: for people who avoid the plain one
- Signature: cat lovers’ default laugh
Compare the options
| Emoji | Name | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| cat with tears of joyU+1F639 | Laughing cat | |
| face with tears of joyU+1F602 | Laughing human | |
| rolling on the floor laughingU+1F923 | Hysterical | |
| grinning cat with smiling eyesU+1F638 | Happy cat | |
| crying catU+1F63F | Sad cat |
The happy crying cat meme
😹 works as a reaction to something funny, similar to 😂. The cat face adds a playful, slightly theatrical tone. The meme format pairs real cat photos with the emoji’s exaggerated tears — a pet doing something ridiculous, captioned with the crying-from-laughter face.
Because the cat face is exaggerated, 😹 can read as more ironic or over-the-top than 😂. Use it when you want to laugh at something a bit ridiculous, especially if a pet or animal is involved.
Questions people ask
What does 😹 mean?
Laughing until you cry — the same as 😂, drawn as a cat.
What is the difference between 😹 and 😂?
Only the species. Some people find the cat version less overused or more playful.
What does 😹 mean from a guy?
He found it funny. The cat face adds nothing beyond playfulness.
About this guide
Written and maintained by the Emoji Directory editorial team, without ads or sponsorship. Meanings describe how the emoji is commonly used in public posts and messages, not an official definition. Names, code points, versions, keywords and translations come from the Unicode Emoji 18.0 and CLDR data; shortcodes from the gemoji project. Last reviewed . Spotted a mistake or a new usage? Tell us, or read how the directory is made.
