The most common and most likely answer to this crossword clue is the 9 letter word EMOTICONS
I've seen this crossword clue in Financial Times
E
M
O
T
I
C
O
N
S
More clues leading to the result EMOTICONS
- Modern images from one book backed by right-wingers
- Economist translated messaging symbols?
- Economist put out images with feeling
- Large book about study is getting circulated, maybe 🙂 🙂
- Sitcom – one developed for faces on screen
- Happy faces disturb economist
- Perhaps “smiley” and “laughing” feelings must conceal dejection at heart?
- Faces online economist in confusion
Buddy explains!
The straight part
We know that "Perhaps “smiley” and “laughing”" is the straight/definition part of the clue. The straight part is often a synonym or definition, in this case perhaps “smiley” and “laughing” = emoticons.The cryptic/wordplay part
In cryptic crossword there's often an wordplay/cryptic part as well.This part involves a more complex hint, such as an anagram, homophone, hidden word, etc.
Sadly, We don't have an explanation for this specific crossword clue yet.
What does EMOTICONS mean?
EMOTICONS noun- A graphical representation of a particular emotion of the writer, used especially in SMS, email, or other electronic communication.