This emoji was newly added in 2024. As shaking one's head horizontally means "no" in most cultures, people all over the world can easily understand it.

Beyond a simple "no," it's also useful for expressing subtle emotions like surprise, as in "No way!," or resignation, as in "It can't be helped." The emoji's movement helps to better convey nuances like firmness or disappointment, which are hard to express through text alone.