emoticon 
Clusters of punctuation--such as : ) and : >--that are used to set the tone for the sentence that precedes them in a text message. The knack to interpreting them is to tilt your head sideways to the left and look for a facial expression. Some examples:

: ) a grin
:-) another grin
:-( a frown
;-) a wink
: > a wicked grin
@-->-->- a long-stemmed rose