NZ's favourite emoji revealed

A new emoji study has found New Zealand's most popular emoji - and the emojis causing the most trouble between the generations.

HighSpeedInternet.com ran an international survey among major English-speaking countries, to better understand what emojis mean to people around the world. They ignored the smiley face to highlight the differences in the other emojis.

Data showed the heart emoji beat its way to the top of Kiwis' list. Australia's favourite was the cheeky tongue-out winking face, while the poop emoji shot to the top of Ireland.

The survey also showed the confusion over a few emojis' meanings - many caused by generation gaps - and potentially causing a few awkward moments.

The majority of 18 to 24-year-olds see the eggplant emoji as a sexual reference, while those over 25 say it's a vegetable.

The water emoji has a double meaning, with the youth saying it has a sexual meaning. Those older see it as rain.

Confusion also lingers over the peach. New Zealanders use the peach to innocently describe the fruit, while many other countries use it to refer to booty.

Overall, 18 to 24-year-olds were more likely to use emojis for sexual references than any other age group.

So be careful messaging the young and asking if they want eggplant for dinner.

Newshub.