Teens often use slang and emojis to reference drugs, making it difficult for parents to recognize when a conversation or behavior is connected to substance use. Staying informed about these terms and symbols can help you intervene early if needed. Below are some common slang terms and emojis in use today:

Marijuana 🌿🔥🍁

• Slang: Weed, pot, bud, ganja, kush, grass, gas, trees, reefer, Mary Jane, loud (high-potency weed), 420 (reference to cannabis culture).
• Emojis: 🌳 (tree), 🔥 (fire), 🍃 (leaf), 🚬 (joint or smoking), 💨 (smoke), 🍁 (maple leaf, sometimes used to reference weed), 🌿 (herb or plant), 💚 (green heart).

Cocaine ❄️⛄💎

• Slang: Coke, blow, snow, white, powder, yayo, girl, bump, dust, nose candy, skiing (reference to snorting cocaine).
• Emojis: ❄️ (snowflake), ⛄ (snowman), 💎 (diamond, referencing purity), 🐟 (fish, symbol for high quality), 🌬️ (wind, as in blowing), 💰 (money bags, referencing cost).

MDMA (Ecstasy/Molly) ❤️⚡🍬

• Slang: Molly, E, ecstasy, love drug, happy pill, scooby snacks, X, XTC, beans (pills), thizz.
• Emojis: ❤️ (heart), ⚡ (lightning bolt, energy), 🌈 (rainbow, reference to mood), 🌌 (galaxy, otherworldly), 🍭🍬 (lollipop or candy, referencing pills), 🎉 (party popper).

Opioids 💊🍇🥤

• Slang: Oxy, percs (Percocet), Vikes (Vicodin), lean (syrup mixed with soda), purple drank, smack, M (for morphine), big boys.
• Emojis: 💊 (pill), 🍇 (grape for purple drank), 🥤 (soda cup, representing lean), 💉 (syringe), 💜 (purple heart, often for purple drank), 🤢 (nausea, associated with use or withdrawal).

Benzodiazepines (Xanax, Valium, etc.) 🔑🍫🚌

• Slang: Zannies, bars, Xans, benzos, school bus (yellow Xanax pill), footballs (shape of certain pills), blues (Valium).
• Emojis: 💊 (pill), 🔑 (key, referencing “bars”), 🍫 (chocolate bar, referencing Xanax bars), 🚌 (school bus, yellow Xanax), 😴 (sleepiness), 🌙 (nighttime, referencing sedative effect).

Heroin 💉🐉🍂

• Slang: Dope, smack, H, brown, dragon, tar, black (black tar heroin), gear.
• Emojis: 💉 (syringe), 🐉 (dragon, slang for chasing the dragon), 🍂 (fallen leaf, referencing heroin’s color), 💀 (skull, due to danger), 🕳️ (hole, referencing needles or injection marks).

Vaping and E-cigarettes 🔋💨🚬

• Slang: Juuling, puffing, ripping a cart, vape, hitting the pen, mods, rigs (vape devices), clouds.
• Emojis: 🔋 (battery, for vape pen), 💨 (smoke), 🚬 (cigarette), 🚫🔥 (no smoking), 👄 (mouth for vaping), 🎈 (balloon, sometimes referencing inhaling substances), 🕹️ (joystick, vape mod).

Synthetic Drugs (Spice, K2) 🌌⚗️🧪

• Slang: Fake weed, bliss, K2, spice, synthetic marijuana, black mamba, Bombay blue.
• Emojis: 🌌 (galaxy, otherworldly experience), ⚗️ (chemistry flask, synthetic origin), 🧪 (test tube), 💀 (skull for danger), 🔮 (crystal ball, unpredictability).

General Drug-Related Emojis

In addition to specific emojis tied to each substance, teens often use general symbols to discuss drug-related activities:

• 💵🤑💰: Money emojis, often referencing the cost or purchase of drugs.
• 🚀: Rocket, referencing getting “high” or the sensation of being elevated.
• 🍄: Mushroom, commonly used for psilocybin mushrooms.
• ⛽: Gas pump, referencing “gas” or high-quality marijuana.
• 🌹: Rose, sometimes used for “roaches” or leftover cannabis.
• 👃: Nose, referencing snorting substances like cocaine or ketamine.

References

1. Bark. (2024). "Drug Slang Emojis: Here’s What Every Parent Needs to Know." 
2. The Recovery Village. (2023). "Decoding Drug Slang: A Comprehensive Guide." 
3. National Institute on Drug Abuse. (2021). "Teen Drug Use Trends."