The universally accepted white flag is typically accepted as a sign of surrender or giving up; but the black flag could be used as a more morose symbol of surrender. If you have had a terrible day and just want to crawl into bed, you could use the flag as a way to show your utter defeat. An example of such a message could be: not today guys, this day has sucked 🏴

Due to the deep black colour of the flag, this symbol could also be used to mark a sad occasion like a funeral or the death of a loved one. The black flag emoji doesn’t sequence well with flowers or other more uplifting emoji items, so should only be really used when feeling particularly depressed and down.

And finally, we have a more positive (sort of) use for the black flag emoji; showing off your pirate side. Black flags were a common feature of many a pirate ship in the days of the wild seas, so you could use the flag to indicate a pirate like act, for example stealing or counting yer dubloons. Make sure you use a full hearty arrrrrrrrrrrr alongside it.