emo

noun

ˈē-(ˌ)mō 

: a style of rock music influenced by punk rock and featuring introspective and emotionally fraught lyrics

In emo, the heart forever hurts, and the ultra-introspective songwriter pines for beautiful death.

—Robert Sullivan

emo adjective

The film is sensitively directed, full of emo songs and quiet little character moments.

—Kyle Smith

Examples of emo in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

In the current moment, there’s this new heavy sound that feels like it was built on early-Nineties shoegaze, with fair amount of emo from the mid to late Nineties and a little bit of old-school punk rock in it. —David Browne, Rolling Stone, 8 Mar. 2025

Laced with 2000s emo and pop-punk hits, Joseph Kahn (Bodied) brings frenetic energy to this sci-fi/horror satire. —Alison Foreman, IndieWire, 6 Mar. 2025

Warped Tour was founded by Kevin Lyman and toured the country from 1995-2018, spotlighting hundreds of up-and-coming and classic punk, emo, hardcore and pop punk bands over the years. —Gil Kaufman, Billboard, 27 Feb. 2025

Vans Warped Tour Long Beach: July 26-27 After a six-year hiatus, this storied celebration of emo and punk-rock is officially returning in 2025 to celebrate its 30th anniversary with dates in three U.S. cities. —George Varga, San Diego Union-Tribune, 14 Feb. 2025

Word History

Etymology

short for emotional

First Known Use

1988, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for emo

• acknow
• aglow
• ago
• airglow
• aloe
• altho
• although
• ammo
• backflow
• backhoe
• banjo
• barbeau