There are various different scenarios where the Winking Face with Tongue emoji excels. In particular chatting with friends; the emoji can be used in a kind of “I’m joking” fashion or as a way to suggest craziness. In the first example, you make a joke to a friend about their sandwich filling, suggesting that egg mayonnaise is a sign of weakness. You can follow this up with the face alone to let them know you are just pulling their leg. In the case of using it to suggest zaniness, it is probably best to accompany the emoji with a motive. For example, you suggest to your friends that you should go out salsa dancing for a bit of fun. You may be suggesting this out of the blue, so follow up with the Crazy Face to show them you are being spontaneous. The emoji can also be used to suggest sexual activities; the combination of sticking out tongue and winking eye is perfect for flirting or pursuing a romantic interest in a playful way.

Approved in Unicode 6.0, the Winking Face with Tongue was added to Emoji 1.0 in 2015. This version of Unicode also included the Tears of Joy Face and Neutral Face.