🙈 Meaning: What does the monkey see nothing emoji mean?

The emoji 🙈 represents the a monkey who doesn't want to see anything, the famous Mizaru the three wise monkeys of Japan. It expresses the refusal to see evil, but also the shame, the shyness or a small embarrassment. Depending on the context, this monkey face covering its eyes with its hands can also indicate flirtation or a secret well-kept.

You can also find out more by clicking here are the 10 emojis that 9 out of 10 people misunderstand. And you, do you really know them?

To test your knowledge of emojis like 🙈, you can take the quiz here :

The different meanings of the smiley 🙈

L'monkey emoji (can't see a thing) shows a brown monkey head that covers its eyes with his hands, his mouth open. This facial expression can have several meanings depending on the context.

• Shame or Modesty : You're hiding from something embarrassing. The basic meaning remains «not to see anything»by extension «not to see the wrong in it», which the Japanese call Mizaru.
• Shyness or embarrassment : when you don't dare to look at or face a situation. The emoji then conveys the’embarrassment or a slight sense of vulnerability.
• Willful Blindness one refusal to acknowledge the problem, a review of the denial. It is often directed at someone who does not want to face reality.
• Flirt : paired with 😍 or hearts, it means “I like you, but I don’t dare.” A usage playful very common in private messages.

Its interpretation also varies across cultures: here, a a form of folk wisdom and common sense; here, a judgment or a tip from discretion. Its appearance varies from one messaging app to another, but the idea of covering one's eyes remains the same across all of them.

How to use this 🙈 emoji?

L'monkey emoji (can't see a thing) is used whenever you want to say “I didn’t see anything,” either jokingly or discretion. Here are the main use cases:

• Do you want to remind someone to stand up straight and to turn a blind eye to evil Did someone else do it? Send 🙈—the message will go through on its own.
• Do you want to show that you know how to hold a secret ? On WhatsApp, Facebook, or in a private message, 🙈 says, “I didn’t see anything, I didn’t know anything.”.
• Do you feel shame or a small embarrassment ? The monkey covering its eyes expresses this feeling without saying a word.
• Want to let someone know you like them? When paired with 😍, 🙈 means “I like you, but I don’t dare.” Perfect for the flirt.

A slight difference in tone: 🙈 remains informal. Use it with friends, family, or when flirting, but avoid it in a conversation professional or formal, where it would seem too light.

Here are a few examples of sentences using the emoji Mizaru :

1. Don't worry, I'll pretend I didn't see anything 🙈.
2. Don't worry about what they're doing; just be nice to the people around you 🙈🙈.
3. I'm very shy, you know 🙈
4. You're never here anyway 🙈
5. I like you, but seriously 😍🙈
6. My heart already belongs to you, but you don't even realize it 🙈🙊!

You'll notice that 🙈 is often paired with its two companions: the monkey can't hear a thing 🙉 and the monkey say nothing 🙊. Together, they remind us of the three wise monkeys and give your message a more friendly tone.

Origin of this emoji 🙈

Where does the "monkey who doesn't see a thing" emoji come from?

From a technical standpoint, the design of this monkey's face was initially based on two proposals Unicode. The first one, referenced L2/07-257, date of 2007. The second, L2/09-026, arrives in 2009, spearheaded in particular by engineers from’Apple as Mark Davis, Markus Scherer, Peter Edberg Where Darick Tong.

This work was subsequently validated by the Unicode Consortium. The emoji is officially added to Unicode 6.0 in 2010, under the English name of See-No-Evil Monkey. It becomes available on our phones with the version Emoji 1.0, published in June 2015.

Characteristics of the smiley 🙈

Here are the technical details and specifications unicode of the emoji pretend not to see anything 🙈, if you want to copy it or find out its exact code:

One thing to keep in mind: the monkey's appearance varies depending on the platform. On Google, Apple, Samsung Where Twitter, the rendering of the brown monkey hiding its eyes with its hands changes slightly, but the meaning remains the same everywhere.

The philosophy behind the three wise monkeys

To truly understand the meaning of this emoji, you have to go back to the Japanese proverb from three wise monkeys. Each person covers part of their face to illustrate a rule of life.

• Mizaru 🙈 covers her eyes: to turn a blind eye.
• Kikazaru 🙉 covers his ears: not hear a thing bad.
• Iwazaru 🙊 covers her mouth: say nothing negative.

The idea isn't to turn a blind eye to everything by ignorance. The original message, rather, urges us not to let evil enter our field of vision, in order to preserve a form of’innocence and a sense of calm in everyday life. It’s this dual meaning—both serious and playful—that makes the 🙈 so expressive today.

Emojis associated with 🙈

The "I didn't see a thing" monkey is often combined with other emojis to add nuance to the message:

• With 🙉 and 🙊: to resume the Complete Trio of the Three Wise Monkeys.
• With 😅: to indicate the discomfort or a slight embarrassment.

Now you know all the nuances of the 🙈 emoji.

For more information, you can also read our comprehensive guide on the uses of the red smiley face 😊 !