The Emoji
U+1FA7B ยท :xray:
Primarily used metaphorically to signal emotional transparency, calling out fake behavior, or darkly humorous takes on physical injury. Medical-core aesthetic users deploy it stylistically.
Mostly used in its literal sense โ sharing health updates, hospital visits, and medical news with family and friends via WhatsApp. Some urban Gen Z use the metaphorical 'exposed' meaning.
Predominantly literal usage in medical and family health communication contexts. Occasionally used in educational and medical professional social media content.
Universally understood as a medical imaging symbol. Cross-culturally communicates hospital visits, health checks, bone injuries, and diagnostic medicine without ambiguity.
Used primarily in literal medical contexts โ injury updates, hospital check-ins, and health news shared in family group chats. Limited metaphorical use.
Literal interpretation dominates โ hospital visits, medical appointments, and healthcare discussions. Young urban users may adopt Gen Z metaphorical usage through global media influence.
Associated with medical healthcare, hospital visits, and modern diagnostic technology. Social media use tends to remain literal with some ironic usage emerging among younger Weibo/Douyin users.
Used in health and medical contexts, and occasionally in a clinical-aesthetic or kawaii-science crossover aesthetic. Japanese users appreciate its precise, clean visual symbolism.
Appears in health content, medical drama fan communities, and K-content where hospital storylines are popular. Medical-core aesthetic fits into Korean 'concept' culture.
Used in medical and health update contexts. Younger Taiwanese users influenced by Western Gen Z content may use it metaphorically for transparency and emotional exposure.
Literal medical usage is primary. Some bilingual digital-native users adopt English-language Gen Z ironic interpretations from Western social media.
Used predominantly for health updates and medical contexts in family group chats. OFW (Overseas Filipino Worker) communities use it in health check communications.
Primarily literal in health and hospital contexts. Growing adoption of metaphorical 'exposed/see-through' usage among younger Indonesian TikTok and Twitter users.
Associated with medical care and hospital aesthetics. Thai social media users may pair it with dramatic health-related content or beauty/body check content.
Literal medical usage is dominant. Young Vietnamese users on TikTok are beginning to adopt the ironic and transparent/exposed metaphorical usage.
Used for health communication in multi-platform family messaging. Bilingual younger users blend literal and Gen Z metaphorical uses across social platforms.
Primarily literal โ medical appointments, health updates, and hospital-related communication. Medical education communities use it professionally on social platforms.
Multicultural digital population means both literal and metaphorical uses coexist. Healthcare professionals use it professionally; younger expat communities adopt Gen Z meanings.
Literal medical use is primary. Egyptian social media humor sometimes incorporates it in ironic health commentary. Medical professional communities use it educationally.
Used in health and medical contexts. Turkish social media users with Gen Z influence may adopt the 'seeing through lies' metaphor in online discourse.
Predominantly literal in medical and health communication. Usage among younger Iranians on Instagram and Telegram may reflect broader Gen Z metaphorical meanings.
Used in health update communications and medical discussions. Nollywood hospital drama fans and medical students use it contextually online.
Literal medical usage combined with emerging Gen Z ironic use among urban digital natives. Health awareness campaigns use it in educational social content.
Used both literally for NHS/medical content and metaphorically in Gen Z 'seeing through BS' usage. British dark humor makes the ironic skeleton/injury format popular.
Primarily literal in French medical and healthcare communication. Younger French TikTok users adopt the Anglo-Gen Z metaphorical interpretations through platform culture.
Predominantly literal and professional โ used in medical, healthcare, and scientific contexts. German directness aligns with the emoji's transparent/revealing metaphor when used figuratively.
Medical and health usage is primary. Mediterranean expressive culture means it occasionally appears in dramatic health storytelling and emotional vulnerability contexts.
Used in health contexts and enthusiastically adopted into Brazilian meme culture โ Brazilian Gen Z use it in injury humor and 'seeing through you' callout posts with characteristic flair.
Medical usage is primary but Mexican internet culture embraces the dark humor skeleton angle (influenced by Dรญa de los Muertos cultural comfort with skeletal imagery). Used humorously in memes.
Across Latin America, medical literal use dominates while younger users in urban centers adopt both the dark skeleton humor and the 'transparent/exposed' metaphorical meanings.
Used in literal health contexts and enthusiastically adopted into dry Australian humor for injury stories, 'seeing through' callouts, and medical dark comedy online.
This emoji did not exist in 2010. Medical imaging was represented by workarounds like ๐๐ฅ or described in text. The concept had no dedicated emoji representation.
Still nonexistent as a dedicated emoji. Medical and healthcare digital communication relied on hospital and syringe emojis. X-ray content was purely photographic on early social platforms.
Introduced in Unicode 13.1 in 2020/2021, initial usage was almost entirely literal โ medical professionals, healthcare workers, and patients sharing health updates. Metaphorical usage had not yet developed.
Firmly established in both literal medical communication and Gen Z metaphorical usage. 'Medical-core' aesthetic has elevated it to style icon status. Widely used in 'transparent/exposed' discourse, skeleton dark humor, and emotional vulnerability contexts across all major platforms.
A medical X-ray image showing skeletal structure, typically depicting a chest or full-body radiograph with visible bones against a dark background.
Represents being emotionally or literally exposed, medical drama storytelling, and the 'see through your lies' callout trope.
Sent to indicate a medical appointment, an X-ray result, injury update, or to express 'you can see right through me' vulnerability in conversation.
Used to express seeing through someone's lies or BS, transparency, being 'exposed,' or having a deep emotional/spiritual connection with someone ('you see right through me'). Also used when talking about physical health scares or hospital visits.
Medical imaging, healthcare communication, health updates, transparency, emotional vulnerability, and dark skeleton humor.
The X-ray evokes a sense of being laid bare โ stripped of external appearances to the core structure. Psychologically it can trigger health anxiety but also metaphorical feelings of being deeply seen or understood, connecting to both fear and intimacy.
The shortcode for X-ray is :xray:
Used flirtatiously to say 'you see right through me' or 'you know me better than anyone,' suggesting deep emotional intimacy. Rare but notable in vulnerable romantic messaging.
Generally safe across all contexts. May trigger health anxiety in sensitive individuals when used in medical discussion. No significant toxic usage patterns identified.

Appearance varies by platform and device. Google Noto, Twemoji, and OpenMoji are open-source.