How to trigger iMessage effects with just a keyword
One of the coolest aesthetic features of iMessage is the animated message effects. If you’re like many users, you may even have discovered them by accident by wishing a friend “Happy Birthday!”or congratulations on promotion unexpectedly flooded your screen with balloons or confetti.
Apple’s iMessage effects first appeared in iOS 10 and still work great in the latest versions of iOS. While Apple has only officially mentioned a few code words and phrases that automatically trigger these effects, I’ve compiled an extensive list of all the hidden triggers that I could find through research and trial and error – with multiple languages included.
In iOS 14 and iOS 15, Apple no longer added English trigger words and phrases to the current list of Easter eggs for iMessage effects. However, more words and phrases have been added in iOS 14 that work with “22 Indian languages”including Bengali, Gujarati, Hindi, Kannada, Marathi, Tamil, Telugu, and Urdu. This means there are now over 230 hidden text lines to automatically play full screen effects in your iMessage conversations!
- Jump straight to code words and phrases: Balloons | Confetti | Fireworks | Celebration | Lasers | Falling star
Running iMessage Effects
To use these iMessage effects, you need to create a message with another iPhone user. The effects will still show the animation on your end when you text your Android friends with green bubbles, but they won’t be able to see it themselves. If you don’t have an iPhone friend to test the effects, you can try it by sending a message yourself.
In some cases, a simple trigger word or phrase will automatically apply the screen effect. While Apple hasn’t included all of these in its official list, some Google searches and trial and error confirm six of them, each with some variation.
What’s more, these trigger words work in multiple languages. I have included several options in English, Arabic, Bengali, Catalan, Chinese, Croatian, Czech, Danish, Dutch, Estonian, Finnish, French, German, Greek, Gujarati, Hebrew, Hindi, Hungarian, Indonesian, Italian, Japanese, Kannada, Korean, Malay, Marathi, Norwegian, Polish, Portuguese, Romanian, Russian, Slovak, Spanish, Swedish, Tamil, Telugu, Thai, Turkish, Ukrainian, Urdu and Vietnamese. And there are some additional notes and tips for using these trigger words in any language you choose:
- For simplicity, I have included words or phrases in lowercase only.
- But I also included options with and without diacritics (accents).
- I’ve included a translation effect next to the name of each language.
- All of the following should work when using some or all capital letters.
- All of the below should work when adding punctuation before or after.
- In Spanish, you can contain a word or phrase within ¡! marks (inverted and regular exclamation marks) to add extra emphasis. For example, ¡feliz cumpleanos!
- I tested emojis as a replacement but they never triggered anything.
- Words and phrases with ||| after they were not tested to work but YMMV.
- English is listed first for each effect; other languages are listed alphabetically.
- Experiment with your chosen language to find alternatives.
I didn’t find triggers in Bulgarian, Latvian, Lithuanian, Serbian or Slovenian.
Balloons
The balloon effect can be triggered by wishing someone a happy birthday. You have probably seen this many times already, just wishing happy birthday to your family and friends.
ENGLISH - balloons
------------------
happy birthday
████████████████████████████████████████████████████
ARBABIC - بالونات (balloons)
----------------------------
عيد ميلاد سعيد (happy birthday)
BENGALI - বেলুন (balloons)
-------------------------
শুভ জন্মদিন (happy birthday)
subho jonmodin (happy birthday)
CATALAN - bafarades (balloons)
------------------------------
per molts anys (happy birthday)
CHINESE VARIATIONS - 气球 / 的氣球 / 氣球 / 加上气球 / 氣球效果 (balloons)
---------------------------------------------------------------------
生日快乐 (happy birthday)
生日快樂 (happy birthday)
CROATIAN - baloni (balloons)
----------------------------
sretan rođendan (happy birthday)
CZECH - balónky (balloons)
--------------------------
vsechno nejlepsi k narozeninam (happy birthday)
všechno nejlepší k narozeninám (happy birthday)
DANISH - balloner (balloons)
----------------------------
tillykke med fødselsdagen (happy birthday)
DUTCH - ballonnen (balloons)
----------------------------
gelukkige verjaardag (happy birthday)
ESTONIAN - õhupallid (balloons)
-------------------------------
palju onne sunnipaevaks (happy birthday) |||
palju õnne sünnipäevaks (happy birthday) |||
FINNISH - ilmapallot (balloons)
-------------------------------
hyvää syntymäpäivää (happy birthday)
hyvaa syntymapaivaa (happy birthday)
FRENCH - ballons (balloons)
---------------------------
joyeux anniversaire (happy birthday)
GERMAN - ballons (balloons)
---------------------------
alles gute zum geburtstag (happy birthday)
herzlichen gluckwunsch zum geburtstag (happy birthday)
herzlichen glückwunsch zum geburtstag (happy birthday)
GREEK - μπαλόνια / Μπαλόνια (balloons)
-------------------------------------
χρόνια πολλά (happy birthday)
Χρόνια πολλά (happy birthday)
HEBREW - בלונים (balloons)
--------------------------
יום הולדת שמח (happy birthday)
HINDI - गुब्बारे (balloons)
-----------------------
जन्मदिन मुबारक (happy birthday)
HUNGARIAN - lufik (balloons)
----------------------------
boldog szuletesnapot (happy birthday)
boldog születésnapot (happy birthday)
INDONESIAN - balon (balloons)
-----------------------------
selamat ulang tahun (happy birthday)
ITALIAN - palloncini (balloons)
-------------------------------
buon compleanno (happy birthday)
JAPANESE - 風船 (balloons)
-------------------------
誕生日おめでとう (happy birthday)
KOREAN - 풍선 (balloons)
-----------------------
생일 축하합니다 (happy birthday)
MALAY - belon (balloons)
------------------------
selamat hari lahir (happy birthday)
MARATHI - फुगे (balloons)
------------------------
वाढदिवसाच्या हार्दिक शुभेच्छा (happy birthday)
NORWEGIAN - ballonger (balloons)
--------------------------------
gratulerer med dagen (happy birthday)
POLISH - balony (balloons)
--------------------------
wszystkiego najlepszego z okazji urodzin (happy birthday)
PORTUGUESE - balões (balloons)
------------------------------
feliz aniversario (happy birthday)
feliz aniversário (happy birthday)
ROMANIAN - baloane (balloons)
-----------------------------
la mulți ani (happy birthday)
la multi ani (happy birthday)
RUSSIAN - шарики (balloons)
--------------------------
с днем рождения (happy birthday)
SLOVAK - balóny (balloons)
--------------------------
všetko najlepšie (best wishes) |||
vsetko najlepsie (best wishes) |||
SPANISH - globos (balloons)
---------------------------
feliz cumpleanos (happy birthday)
feliz cumpleaños (happy birthday)
SWEDISH - ballonger (balloons)
------------------------------
grattis på födelsedagen (happy birthday)
grattis pa fodelsedagen (happy birthday)
THAI - ลูกโป่ง / บอลลูนส (balloons)
--------------------------------
สุขสันต์วันเกิด (happy birthday)
TURKISH - balonları (balloons)
------------------------------
doğum günün kutlu olsun (happy birthday)
dogum gunun kutlu olsun (happy birthday)
UKRANIAN - кульки / повітряні кулі (balloons)
----------------------------------------
з днем народження (happy birthday)
VIETNAMESE - bóng bay (balloons)
--------------------------------
chuc mung sinh nhat (happy birthday)
chúc mừng sinh nhật (happy birthday)
confetti
The confetti effect appears when you congratulate someone or wish a happy Holi (Hindu spring festival in honor of Krishna). You can also activate it with the Best Wishes passphrase.
ENGLISH - confetti
------------------
congratulations
congrats
happy holi
best wishes
████████████████████████████████████████████████████
ARBABIC - قصاصات ورقية (confetti)
---------------------------------
تهانينا (congratulations)
BENGALI - কনফেটি (confetti)
--------------------------
শুভ হোলি (happy holi)
CATALAN - confeti (confetti)
----------------------------
felicitats (congratulations)
Felicitats (congrats)
CHINESE VARIATIONS - 五彩纸屑 / 的五彩碎紙 / 五彩碎紙 / 彩碎紙 / 七彩紙碎 / 七彩紙碎效果 / 加上五彩纸屑 (confetti)
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
恭喜 (congratulations)
祝賀 (congratulations) |||
CROATIAN - konfeti (confetti)
-----------------------------
cestitke (congratulations) |||
čestitke (congratulations) |||
CZECH - konfety (confetti)
--------------------------
gratulujeme (congratulations)
DANISH - konfetti (confetti)
----------------------------
tillykke (congratulations)
DUTCH - confetti (confetti)
---------------------------
gefeliciteerd (congratulations)
proficiat (congrats)
ESTONIAN - konfetid (confetti)
------------------------------
onnitlused (congratulations) |||
õnnitlused (congratulations) |||
FINNISH - konfetti (confetti)
-----------------------------
Onnittelut (congratulations)
onnittelut (congrats)
onneksi olkoon (congratulations) |||
FRENCH - confettis (confetti)
-----------------------------
felicitations (congratulations)
félicitations (congratulations)
GERMAN - konfetti (confetti)
----------------------------
herzlichen gluckwunsch (congratulations)
herzlichen glückwunsch (congratulations)
GREEK - κομφετί / Κομφετί (confetti)
----------------------------------
συγχαρητήρια (congratulations)
Συγχαρητήρια (congratulations)
GUJARATI - કોન્ફેટી (confetti)
--------------------------
અભિનંદન (congratulations)
HEBREW - פְּתִיתֵי נִיָר סַסגוֹנִיִם (confetti)
-------------------------------------
מזל טוב (mazel tov)
HINDI - कंफ़ेद्दी (confetti)
-----------------------
बधाई हो (congratulations)
बधाई (congratulations)
होली मुबारक (happy holi)
HUNGARIAN - konfetti (confetti)
-------------------------------
gratulalunk (congratulations)
gratulálunk (congratulations)
INDONESIAN - confetti (confetti)
--------------------------------
selamat (congrats)
Selamat (congratulations)
ITALIAN - coriandoli (confetti)
-------------------------------
congratulazioni (congratulations)
JAPANESE - 紙ふぶき (confetti)
-----------------------------
おめでとうございます (congratulations)
KANNADA - ಕಾನ್ಫೆಟ್ಟಿ (confetti)
--------------------------
ಅಭಿನಂದನೆಗಳು (congratulations)
KOREAN - 축하 꽃종이 / 색종이 조각 (confetti)
----------------------------------------
축하합니다 (congratulations)
축하해 (congrats)
MALAY - konfeti (confetti)
--------------------------
tahniah (congratulations)
MARATHI - कन्फेटी (confetti)
--------------------------
अभिनंदन (congratulations)
NORWEGIAN - konfetti (confetti)
-------------------------------
gratulerer (congratulations)
POLISH - konfetti (confetti)
----------------------------
gratulacje (congratulations)
PORTUGUESE - confete (confetti)
-------------------------------
parabens (congratulations)
parabéns (congratulations)
ROMANIAN - confetti (confetti)
------------------------------
Felicitări (congratulations)
felicitari (congrats)
RUSSIAN - конфетти (confetti)
----------------------------
поздравляю (congratulations)
SLOVAK - konfety (confetti)
---------------------------
blahoželám (congratulations) |||
blahozelam (congratulations) |||
SPANISH - confeti (confetti)
----------------------------
felicidades (congratulations)
enhorabuena (congratulations)
felicitaciones (congratulations)
SWEDISH - konfetti (confetti)
-----------------------------
Grattis (congratulations)
grattis (congrats)
THAI - กระดาษโปรย / ลูกปา (confetti)
-----------------------------------
ขอแสดงความยินดีด้วย (congratulations)
TURKISH - konfetiler (confetti)
-------------------------------
Tebrikler (congratulations)
tebrikler (congrats)
UKRANIAN - конфеті (confetti)
----------------------------
вітаю (congratulations)
URDU - کنفیٹی (confetti)
------------------------
مبارک ہو (congratulations)
VIETNAMESE - hoa giấy (confetti)
--------------------------------
chuc mung (congrats)
chúc mừng (congrats)
xin chuc mung (congratulations)
xin chúc mừng (congratulations)
fireworks
The fireworks effect can be activated by wishing someone a Happy New Year or Happy Diwali (Hindu festival of lights). However, in some regions, the use of New Year’s greetings will cause a celebration effect (see the next section).
ENGLISH - fireworks
-------------------
happy new year
happy diwali
happy deepavali
happy deepawali
████████████████████████████████████████████████████
ARBABIC - ألعاب نارية (fireworks)
---------------------------------
سنة جديدة سعيدة (happy new year) |||
سنه جديده سعيده (happy new year) |||
CATALAN - focs artificials (fireworks)
--------------------------------------
bon any nou (happy new year) |||
CHINESE VARIATIONS - 烟花 / 上烟火 / 的煙火 / 煙火 / 煙花 / 煙花效果 / 加上烟火 (fireworks)
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
新年快乐 (happy new year)
新年快樂 (happy new year)
新年好 (happy new year)
过年好 (happy new year)
恭喜发财 (happy new year)
CROATIAN - vatromet (fireworks)
-------------------------------
sretna nova godina (happy new year)
CZECH - ohňostroj (fireworks)
-----------------------------
stastny novy rok (happy new year)
šťastný nový rok (happy new year)
DANISH - fyrværkeri (fireworks)
-------------------------------
godt nytar (happy new year)
godt nytår (happy new year)
DUTCH - vuurwerk (fireworks)
----------------------------
gelukkig nieuwjaar (happy new year)
ESTONIAN - ilutulestiku (fireworks)
-----------------------------------
head uut aastat (happy new year) |||
FINNISH - ilotulitus (fireworks)
--------------------------------
hyvää uutta vuotta (happy new year)
hyvaa uutta vuotta (happy new year)
FRENCH - feux d’artifice (fireworks)
------------------------------------
bonne annee (happy new year)
bonne année (happy new year)
GERMAN - feuerwerk (fireworks)
------------------------------
frohes neues jahr (happy new year)
GREEK - πυροτεχνήματα / Πυροτεχνήματα (fireworks)
----------------------------------------------
καλή χρονιά (happy new year)
Καλή χρονιά (happy new year)
ευτυχισμένο το νέο έτος (happy new year)
Ευτυχισμένο το νέο έτος (happy new year)
GUJARATI - ફટાકડા (fireworks)
----------------------------
દિવાળીની શુભકામના (happy diwali)
HEBREW - פְּזיקוקין (fireworks)
-----------------------------
שנה טובה (happy new year)
HINDI - आतिशबाजी (fireworks)
---------------------------
शुभ दीवाली (happy diwali)
HUNGARIAN - tűzijáték (fireworks)
---------------------------------
boldog uj evet (happy new year)
boldog új évet (happy new year)
INDONESIAN - kembang api (fireworks)
------------------------------------
selamat tahun baru (happy new year)
ITALIAN - fuochi d'artificio (fireworks)
----------------------------------------
buon anno (happy new year)
JAPANESE - 花火 (fireworks)
--------------------------
あけましておめでとうございます (happy new year)
あけおめ (happy new year)
あけましておめでとう (happy new year)
謹賀新年 (happy new year)
MALAY - bunga api (fireworks)
-----------------------------
selamat tahun baru (happy new year)
MARATHI - फटाके (fireworks)
--------------------------
दिवाळीच्या हार्दिक शुभेच्छा (happy diwali)
शुभ दिपावली (happy diwali)
NORWEGIAN - fyrverkeri (fireworks)
----------------------------------
godt nytt år (happy new year)
POLISH - sztuczne ognie (fireworks)
-----------------------------------
szczesliwego nowego roku (happy new year)
szczęśliwego nowego roku (happy new year)
PORTUGUESE - ogo de artifício (fireworks)
-----------------------------------------
feliz ano novo (happy new year)
ROMANIAN - artificii (fireworks)
--------------------------------
un an nou fericit (happy new year)
RUSSIAN - фейерверк (fireworks)
------------------------------
с новым годом (happy new year)
SLOVAK - ohňostroj (fireworks)
------------------------------
šťastný nový rok (happy new year)
stastny novy rok (happy new year)
SPANISH - fuegos artificiales (fireworks)
-----------------------------------------
feliz ano nuevo (happy new year)
feliz año nuevo (happy new year)
SWEDISH - fyrverkerier (fireworks)
----------------------------------
gott nytt år (happy new year / happy lunar new year)
gott nytt ar (happy new year / happy lunar new year)
TAMIL - வானவேடிக்கை (fireworks)
-------------------------------
புத்தாண்டு வாழ்த்துக்கள் (happy new year)
இனிய தீபாவளி வாழ்த்துக்கள் (happy diwali)
TELUGU - బాణసంచా (fireworks)
-----------------------------
దీపావళి శుభాకాంక్షలు (happy diwali)
THAI - ดอกไม้ไฟ (fireworks)
--------------------------
สวัสดีปีใหม่ (happy new year)
TURKISH - havai fişekler (fireworks)
------------------------------------
yeni yılın kutlu olsun (happy new year) |||
UKRANIAN - феєрверк / Феєрверк (fireworks)
---------------------------------------
з новим роком (happy new year)
URDU - آتش بازی (fireworks)
---------------------------
نیا سال مبارک ہو (happy new year)
VIETNAMESE - pháo hoa (fireworks)
---------------------------------
chuc mung nam moi (happy new year)
chúc mừng năm mới (happy new year)
celebration
Similarly, the celebration effect comes when you wish someone a happy Chinese New Year or Lunar New Year. In some regions, a simple wish for a Happy New Year will trigger a celebration instead of fireworks (see previous section).
ENGLISH - celebration
---------------------
happy chinese new year
happy lunar new year
████████████████████████████████████████████████████
ARBABIC - احتفال (celebration)
------------------------------
سنة صينية جديدة سعيدة (happy chinese new year)
CATALAN - celebració (celebration)
----------------------------------
feliç any nou xinès (happy chinese new year)
feliç any nou lunar (happy lunar new year)
CHINESE VARIATIONS - 庆典 (celebration)
--------------------------------------
春节快乐 (happy new year)
农历新年快乐 (happy chinese new year)
CROATIAN - proslava (celebration)
---------------------------------
sretna kineska nova godina (happy chinese new year)
sretna lunarna nova godina (happy chinese new year)
CZECH - oslava (celebration)
----------------------------
stastny cinsky novy rok (happy chinese new year)
šťastný čínský nový rok (happy chinese new year)
stastny lunarni novy rok (happy lunar new year)
šťastný lunární nový rok (happy lunar new year)
DANISH - fest (celebration)
---------------------------
godt kinesisk nytar (happy chinese new year)
godt kinesisk nytår (happy chinese new year)
DUTCH - viering (celebration)
-----------------------------
gelukkig chinees nieuwjaar (happy chinese new year)
ESTONIAN - pidu (celebration)
-----------------------------
head hiina uut aastat (happy chinese new year) |||
onnelik uus aasta (happy new year) |||
õnnelik uus aasta (happy new year) |||
FRENCH - la fête / célébration (celebration)
--------------------------------------------
joyeux nouvel an chinois (happy chinese new year)
GREEK - εορτασμός / Εορτασμός (celebration)
-----------------------------------------
ευτυχισμένο το κινέζικο νέο έτος (happy chinese new year)
Ευτυχισμένο το κινέζικο νέο έτος (happy chinese new year)
ευτυχισμένο το σεληνιακό νέο έτος (happy lunar new year)
Ευτυχισμένο το σεληνιακό νέο έτος (happy lunar new year)
HUNGARIAN - ünneplés (celebration)
----------------------------------
boldog holdujevet (happy lunar new year)
boldog holdújévet (happy lunar new year)
INDONESIAN - perayaan (celebration)
-----------------------------------
selamat tahun baru cina (happy chinese new year)
ITALIAN - celebrazione (celebration)
------------------------------------
buon capodanno cinese (happy chinese new year)
JAPANESE - お祝い (celebration)
------------------------------
旧正月おめでとう (happy new year)
明けましておめでとうございます (happy new year)
旧正月明けましておめでとうございます (happy chinese new year)
旧正月、明けましておめでとうございます (happy chinese new year)
春節おめでとう (congratulations on chinese new year)
旧正月おめでとうございます (congratulations on chinese new year)
KOREAN - 축하 (celebration) / 폭죽 (fireworks)
--------------------------------------------
새해 복 많이 받으세요 (happy new year / happy chinese new year / happy lunar new year)
POLISH - uroczystość (celebration)
----------------------------------
szczesliwego chinskiego nowego roku (happy chinese new year)
szczęśliwego chińskiego nowego roku (happy chinese new year)
szczesliwego ksiezycowego nowego roku (happy lunar new year)
szczęśliwego księżycowego nowego roku (happy lunar new year)
PORTUGUESE - celebração (celebration)
-------------------------------------
feliz ano novo chines (happy chinese new year)
feliz ano novo chinês (happy chinese new year)
feliz ano novo lunar (happy lunar new year)
SLOVAK - oslava (celebration)
------------------------------
šťastný lunárny nový rok (happy lunar new year)
stastny lunarny novy rok (happy lunar new year)
SPANISH - celebracion (celebration)
-----------------------------------
feliz ano nuevo chino (happy chinese new year)
feliz año nuevo chino (happy chinese new year)
feliz ano nuevo lunar (happy lunar new year)
feliz año nuevo lunar (happy lunar new year)
THAI - งานเฉลิมฉลอง (celebration)
--------------------------------
สุขสันต์วันตรุษจีน (happy chinese new year)
UKRANIAN - святкування (celebration)
----------------------------------
з місячним новим роком (happy lunar new year)
lasers
Many of the above keywords and phrases are fairly obvious, or at least can be found by chance when wishing someone a Happy Birthday or a Happy New Year. But there are other code words and phrases that are better hidden. One such passphrase is Pew Pew, which unlocks the Laser effect.
Unlike the other effects described above, “piu-piu”is the only passphrase that works for all languages. There are no translations of the onomatopoeic “piu-piu”that would evoke something, and this is not surprising. The phrase is a phonetic representation of laser guns and real guns (usually real guns with silencers).
ENGLISH - lasers
----------------
pew pew
Falling star
For some weird reason, Apple removed the Shooting Star effect starting in iOS 14, so if you’re running iOS 14 or later on your iPhone, you won’t see it in the regular effects menu. However, that doesn’t mean you still can’t use it – you just need to know the secret passphrase.
Sending someone to Eid Mubarak will cause a shooting star effect. The phrase is an Arabic term meaning “blessed holiday”or “blessed holiday”that Muslims around the world use as a greeting for the holidays of Eid al-Adha and Eid al-Adha.
ENGLISH - lasers
----------------
eid mubarak
Manually sending iMessage effects
Don’t have a term to bring out the effect you’re looking for? It’s okay – using bubble or full-screen effects manually is quite simple. By manually triggering the effect, your recipient will even be able to play the effect in the same way as when receiving the trigger word or phrase.
What is the difference between bubble effects and screen effects? Bubble effects affect individual text bubbles for that message. As the name suggests, screen effects affect the entire screen when used. Unlike bubble effects, screen effects have additional sounds and tactile reactions. It’s a great touch, but you need to be aware if you’re texting in a quiet room.
Also, while you can activate some screen effects with a keyword or phrase, all pop-up effects must be submitted manually – there are no codes for them that will work.
Both bubble and screen effects can be triggered manually by pressing and holding the submit button (up arrow). You can switch between “bubble”and “screen”at the top of the Send with Effect page. Here you can send your message with the following bubble effects:
- Slam
- Loud
- Gentle
- invisible ink
As for all available screen effects, that is:
- Echo (unknown triggers)
- Spotlight (no known triggers)
- Balloons (see triggers above)
- Confetti (see triggers above)
- Love (unknown triggers)
- Lasers (see trigger above)
- Fireworks (see triggers above)
- Shooting Star (removed from the menu in iOS 14; see trigger above)
- Celebration (see triggers above)
Apple’s iMessage effects are a great way to add some fun to your message, and trigger words make it easy to use some of the most popular animations. There may be more of these trigger words and phrases in a future iOS update, but for now, we’ll be sending all our iPhone friends a holiday effect whenever there’s something to celebrate.
Interesting stats:
- There are currently 40 languages listed that can use at least one password or passphrase to trigger full-screen iMessage effects.
- There are currently 51 ways listed above to print “happy birthday”in different languages to trigger a full screen Balloons effect.
- There are currently 66 different ways listed above to enter in different languages what is needed to trigger the Confetti full screen effect.
- There are currently 63 different ways, listed above, to enter in different languages what is needed to run the Fireworks full screen effect.
- There are currently 50 different ways listed above to enter in different languages what is needed to run the Celebration full screen effect.
- There is currently only one trigger for the full screen laser effect.
- There is currently only one trigger for the Shooting Star full screen effect.
- No triggers are known for Echo and Spotlight full screen effects.
- There are 232 triggers listed above.
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