Emoji dictionary
๐ Lemon emoji
[lem-uhโn ih-moh-jee]
What doesย ๐ Lemon emoji mean?
This pretty yellow citrus fruit is represented here in its simplest form, a tilted, yellow oval with a green leaf or two attached to the stem.
It has several meanings, referring both to the fruit and its byproducts, like lemonade, in a literal sense, and to other representations which range from difficulties in life to love for a certain pop star. ๐๐
Where does ๐ Lemon emoji come from?
Lemons are associated with many things, including food, health, beverages, the much beloved performer Beyoncรฉ, fabric and decorative design, and of course, the occasional bump in the road (a lemon) with which the resourceful person might make lemonade.
Since lemons are sour, the metaphor works to suggest that life is not all sweetness and ease, and when one has a difficult moment, one should make the best of it. Often attributed to self-improvement guru Dale Carnegie in the 1940s, the first to use lemons as a “bad thing,” according to Wikipedia, was one Christian anarchist writer named Elbert Hubbard, in a 1915 eulogy for a friend: “He picked up the lemons that Fate had sent him and started a lemonade-stand.”
Then, 100 years later theย lemon emoji was approved as part of Unicode 6.0 in 2010 and added to Emoji 1.0 in 2015. And so the story goes.
Examples of ๐ Lemon emoji
Who uses ๐ Lemon emoji?
Pucker up! Ok, lemons might cause some weird facial expressions, but in the right context, they are a delicious food item, an essential ingredient in some adult beverages, and they also make for a quite delicious decorating motif, among other things.
Sometimes, all of those ideas are rolled into one earnest social-media post!
The lemon emoji is often used in social-media posts about the pop star Beyoncรฉ, ever since her 2016 album “Lemonade” was released. It’s used especially in combination with theย beeย emoji here.
I just got online to say HAPPY BIRTHDAY BEYONCร!!!!!! #Beyonce #BeyDay #HappyBirthdayBeyoncรฉ #QueenBee ๐๐พ๐๐๐๐๐ค๐ฅ๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐โผ๏ธโผ๏ธ๐ฃ๐ฃ pic.twitter.com/VV6taf4CeG
— Mi a Walking Trophy ๐๐๐๐ (@MsSpicySweet) September 4, 2018
Happy 2 year anniversary to #Beyonce's #Lemonade ๐. This album is iconic and timeless, and has really solidified Beyoncรฉ as a talented artist who's artistry knows no bounds! Now Playing, all day and ALL NIGHT LOOOOONG ๐ pic.twitter.com/K3GT4kJxzc
— B (@b_rad_hill) April 23, 2018
And of course, don’t forget celebrating the beauty of actual lemonade, especially when amazing people do amazing things with the zingy yellow fruit!
Kids helping kids! This summer, the Levy family held a lemonade stand in support of #childhoodcancer hero Maya's fundraising goal. With the Levy family's help, Maya has raised almost $500,000 for childhood cancer research! ๐ ๐ pic.twitter.com/8HFP9Fi9gi
— Alex's Lemonade Stand Foundation (@AlexsLemonade) September 6, 2018
@VSU_BSL has the FYE lemonade ๐ & HOT knowledge for you in the same dayโผ๏ธ pic.twitter.com/GGpFoyHVIo
— Brittanye B. (@PrettySassyBrit) September 6, 2018
The emoji also illustrates the idea of “making lemonade,” i.e., when life hands you lemons (as if lemons were a bad thing …).
When life gives you lemons you make… lemonade! ๐Feeling silly on #ThirstyThursday wearing @CalvinKlein ! pic.twitter.com/liqQUmdtdl
— Kathie Lee Gifford (@KathieLGifford) September 6, 2018
Note
This is not meant to be a formal definition of ๐ Lemon emoji like most terms we define on Dictionary.com, but is rather an informal word summary that hopefully touches upon the key aspects of the meaning and usage of ๐ Lemon emoji that will help our users expand their word mastery.