Plural of Emoji

The Quick Answer

The plural of "emoji" is "emojis."

The Plural of Emoji

The plural of "emoji" is "emojis."
  • Emojis provide the emotional cues that are otherwise missing from text conversations. correct tick
  • The popular texting app WhatsApp stores the emojis you use most often under the clock icon. correct tick
The noun "emoji" adheres to the standard rules for forming the plurals of nouns in English (shown in the table below).

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The Standard Rules for Forming the Plurals

The table below shows the standard rules for forming the plurals of nouns in English.
Type Example of Type Forming the Plural Plural
Most Nouns lamp
scythe
add s lamps
scythes
Noun Ending s, sh, ch, x or z bus
dress
add es buses
dresses
Nouns ending [consonant] o hero
zero
tomato
add either s or es
(There are no rules for this - you have to know.)
heroes
zeros
tomatoes
Nouns ending [consonant] i taxi
emoji
add s
taxis
emojis
Nouns ending [vowel] o patio
ratio
add s patios
ratios
Nouns ending [consonant] y story
belly
change the y to an i and add es stories
bellies
Nouns ending [vowel] y valley
chimney
add s valleys
chimneys
Nouns ending f or fe dwarf
hoof
ves and/or s
(There are no rules - you have to know.)
dwarfs
hooves or hoofs
Exceptions man
louse
some nouns undergo a vowel or letters change men
lice
More exceptions salmon
sheep
some nouns do not change at all salmon
sheep
Read more about English spelling rules.

Why Is There Confusion over the Plural of Emoji?

"Emojis" is the best way to make the noun "emoji" plural.

For decades, there has been a debate over whether the plural of "emoji" is "emojis" or just "emoji." That debate is now over. The accepted plural is "emojis."

"Emoji" is a Japanese word, and, as the Japanese language does not recognize plurals, this is the basis for the argument for "emoji" being the plural. However, there are many Japanese words in English (e.g., "tsunami"), and they are pluralized using English rules. In other words, the plural of "tsunami" is "tsunamis."

Some dictionaries still list "emoji" as a recognized plural for "emoji," but updates to these dictionaries are gradually removing "emoji" as an accepted plural.

Of note, Emojipedia (the web's largest emoji reference site) uses the "-s" pluralization.
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This page was written by Craig Shrives.