emo 我emo了 wǒ emo le
The English word, used as a Chinese mood.
The short answer
OnlineNow commonChecked November 2026
emo in Chinese slang means to feel low, sad or moody. It comes from the English word, but Chinese uses it as a verb or an adjective: 我emo了 means “I'm feeling down”.
In a chat
- 里昂 Leon
下雨了，周末的计划也没了。
It's raining, and my weekend plans are off.
- 琦琦 Qiqi
你是不是emo了？
Are you feeling down?
- 里昂 Leon
有一点。
A little.
- 琦琦 Qiqi
别emo了，我们去吃火锅吧！
Don't be down. Let's go eat hotpot!
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How to reply
别emo了，出来走走吧。
Don't be down. Come out for a walk.
怎么了？跟我说说。
What's wrong? Talk to me.
When not to use it
What it means
In English, emo is a style of music and a look. In Chinese slang, the music is gone and only the mood stays: sad, tired of everything, a little sorry for yourself.
我emo了 means “I'm feeling down”. 好emo is “so depressing”. Rain on a weekend, a sad song or a long day at work can all make you emo.
How people use it
emo works as a verb (我emo了), an adjective (这首歌好emo, “this song is so sad”) and in phrases such as emo时刻, “an emo moment”. 别emo了 is a common way to cheer up a friend.
In writing, it is almost always in Latin letters.
Where it comes from
The newspaper 语言文字周报 put emo fourth in its ten top internet expressions of 2021. Its note says that in 2021, 我emo了 became a popular new way to say “I'm in a bad mood”.
The World of Chinese wrote in September 2021 that the word came from the American music style, and that the music and the fashion did not catch on in China. Only the mood word did.
In use
2 examples这首歌太emo了，我听哭了。
This song is so sad that I cried.
一到晚上我就容易emo。
I tend to get down at night.
Sources
This guide is original Dengdeng editorial content, offered under CC BY-SA 4.0. The linked dictionary entries adapt CC-CEDICT under the same license.