Hidden MSN Emoticons
Windows Live Messenger (formerly MSN Messenger) contains a bunch of cool hidden emoticons that are considered to be a secret
.
Here is the listing of every hidden emoticon in MSN and Live Messenger, to use them just type in the code while chatting:
| Emoticon | Code | Notes |
|---|---|---|
 | *9mil | I'M Emoticon (Added in WLM 8 for charity) |
 | ('.') | Bunny rabbit emoticon (Added in WLM 8.5) |
 | (nah) | Goat emoticon (Added in MSN Messenger 7) |
 | (brb) | Be right back (maybe he has a beard) |
 | (ci) | Animated Cigarette emoticon (smoking is bad for you!) |
 | (xx) | XBox emoticon (shameless self promotion?) |
 | (%) | Handcuffs (this emoticon has been there a long time) |
 | (yn) | Fingers crossed emoticon |
 | (h5) | High Five emoticon |
 | (tu) | Turtle emoticon (yes, even more animals) |
 | (?) | ASL emoticon (removed in MSN Messenger 7) |
REMEMBER: Emoticon shortcuts are case-sensitive! Also don't forget, with Messenger, you can use all hidden smileys in your screen name or personal message!
Also try...
Yahoo and Skype have also got sets of "hidden" emoticons, try them!
 Yahoo Hidden Emoticons |
 Hidden Skype Emoticons |
More about the hidden emoticons
When MSN Messenger 6 was released in 2003, it added custom MSN Emoticons and featured many new emoticons and smileys. In this emoticon update, a slew of brand new hidden emoticons was added into MSN Messenger, many of them animated.
Not all of these emoticons are still considered to be hidden. As new versions of Messenger have been released, many of them have become available in the emoticon menu (particularly in version 7). Currently, the cigarette, handcuff and xbox emoticons remain hidden in Live Messenger 9.
Recently added emoticons
Here's a little story about how some new hidden emoticons were added to MSN/Live Messenger recently.
Each year, Microsoft holds a charity auction among it's employees and the person (or group) offering to donate the most money will decide the next emoticon to be added to Messenger.
With the release of MSN Messenger 7, the Hotmail team won the auction and (for some unknown reason, possibly an inside joke) chose to add a goat emoticon to Messenger.
When the Windows Live Messenger 8.5 BETA was released, an employee named Andrew won the auction and decided to add a bunny emoticon in honor of his beloved daughter, Natasha.
We're not sure if Microsoft will continue this trend, no new emoticons have been announced for Windows Live Messenger 9. One thing is for certain, Messenger emoticons feature more animals than any other IM client.
