STEVE INSKEEP, HOST:

Good morning, I'm Steve Inskeep. The Oxford Dictionary people sucked us in again, getting attention with a creative choice for word of the year. It's an emoji, a symbol you can type into text messages so you don't have to put your thoughts into words. It's appropriately titled face with tears of joy. A mobile tech company says it's the world's most popular apology. The frequency of use tripled in 2015. A chart like a stock market chart clearly shows a face with tears of joy bubble. It's MORNING EDITION. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.