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Morse code mnemonics are systems to represent the sound of Morse characters in a way intended to be easy to remember. Since every one of these mnemonics requires a two-step mental translation between sound and character, none of these systems are useful for using manual Morse at practical speeds. Amateur radio clubs can provide resources to learn Morse code.
Visual mnemonic charts have been devised over the ages. Baden-Powell included one in the Girl Guides handbook [1] in 1918.
Here is a more up-to-date version, ca. 1988:
Other visual mnemonic systems have been created for Morse code, mapping the elements of the Morse code characters onto pictures for easy memorization. For instance, "R" ( ▄ ▄▄▄ ▄ ) might be represented as a "racecar" seen in a profile view, with the two wheels of the racecar being the dits and the body being the dah.
Syllabic mnemonics are based on the principle of associating a word or phrase to each Morse code letter, with stressed syllables standing for a dah and unstressed ones for a dit. There is no well-known complete set of syllabic mnemonics for English, but various mnemonics do exist for individual letters.
| Letter | Morse Code | Mnemonic [2] [3] |
|---|---|---|
| A | ▄ ▄▄▄ | say AHH a-PU |
| B | ▄▄▄ ▄ ▄ ▄ | BAND rat-a-tat BOB is the man |
| C | ▄▄▄ ▄ ▄▄▄ ▄ | CATCH it CATCH it CO-ca CO-la |
| D | ▄▄▄ ▄ ▄ | DOG did it DRAC-u-la |
| E | ▄ | eek eye |
| F | ▄ ▄ ▄▄▄ ▄ | did i FAIL it? fetch a FIRE-man |
| G | ▄▄▄ ▄▄▄ ▄ | GOD LOVES it GOOD GRAV-y |
| H | ▄ ▄ ▄ ▄ | ha ha ha ha hip-pi-ty hop |
| I | ▄ ▄ | did it i-an |
| J | ▄ ▄▄▄ ▄▄▄ ▄▄▄ | in JAWSJAWSJAWS I WANT YOU, JONES |
| K | ▄▄▄ ▄ ▄▄▄ | KAN-ga-ROO KICK the CAN |
| L | ▄ ▄▄▄ ▄ ▄ | a LIGHT is lit los AN-ge-les |
| M | ▄▄▄ ▄▄▄ | MA-MA MAC-kie MES-ser |
| N | ▄▄▄ ▄ | NAME it NIK-ki |
| O | ▄▄▄ ▄▄▄ ▄▄▄ | HO HO HO OH MY GOD |
| P | ▄ ▄▄▄ ▄▄▄ ▄ | is PA-PA in? a PRAY-ING abe |
| Q | ▄▄▄ ▄▄▄ ▄ ▄▄▄ | PAY DAY to-DAY (quid) GOD SAVE the QUEEN |
| R | ▄ ▄▄▄ ▄ | a RABB-it ro-TA-tion |
| S | ▄ ▄ ▄ | ss-ss-ss su-per-man |
| T | ▄▄▄ | TALL TIM |
| U | ▄ ▄ ▄▄▄ | kiss a EWE un-der-NEATH |
| V | ▄ ▄ ▄ ▄▄▄ | vee-vee-vee VAH (the opening rhythm of Beethoven's 5th, or Beethoven's V'th) vick-tor-y VEE |
| W | ▄ ▄▄▄ ▄▄▄ | the WORLD WAR with WHITEWHALE |
| X | ▄▄▄ ▄ ▄ ▄▄▄ | CROSS at the DOOR XY-lo-phone RAP |
| Y | ▄▄▄ ▄ ▄▄▄ ▄▄▄ | WHY did IDIE? YOU'RE a COOL DUDE |
| Z | ▄▄▄ ▄▄▄ ▄ ▄ | ZSA ZSA did it ZINCZOO-keep-er |
| Character | Morse Code | Syllabic | Mnemonic [2] |
|---|---|---|---|
| . | ▄ ▄▄▄ ▄ ▄▄▄ ▄ ▄▄▄ | a STOP a STOP a STOP | Periods are also known as "full stops". |
| , | ▄▄▄ ▄▄▄ ▄ ▄ ▄▄▄ ▄▄▄ | COM-MA, it's a COM-MA | Self-explanatory. |
| ? | ▄ ▄ ▄▄▄ ▄▄▄ ▄ ▄ | it's a QUES-TION, is it? | Self-explanatory. |
| : | ▄▄▄ ▄▄▄ ▄▄▄ ▄ ▄ ▄ | HA-WAI-I stan-dard time | The clocks in Hawaii are always on standard time, and don't turn an hour ahead in the summer. Colons are used in displaying time (like in "10:23"). |
| / | ▄▄▄ ▄ ▄ ▄▄▄ ▄ | SHAVE and a HAIR-cut | The rhythm from the musical routine. A barber is a slasher. (NOTE: also Fraction Bar and Division Sign) |
| " | ▄ ▄▄▄ ▄ ▄ ▄▄▄ ▄ | six-TY-six nine-TY-nine | Quotation marks resemble a 66 at the beginning of a quote, and a 99 at the end of a quote. |
| ' | ▄ ▄▄▄ ▄▄▄ ▄▄▄ ▄▄▄ ▄ | and THIS STUFF GOES TO me! | An apostrophe may be used to denote ownership of property. |
| ; | ▄▄▄ ▄ ▄▄▄ ▄ ▄▄▄ ▄ | A-list, B-list, C-list | A semicolon may be used to group ordered lists in the same sentence. |
This technique has you associate a word with each character. For a letter in the alphabet, the associated word will usually begin with the same letter. In that word, tall letters (those descending below the baseline or ascending above the mean line) and capital letters represent dashes, while short letters (aceimnorsuvwxz) represent dots. To recall the Morse code for a character, try to visualize the word.
| Letter | Mnemonic | Morse Code [4] | Comments |
|---|---|---|---|
| A | at | ·- | |
| B | bean | -··· | or Bean as in "Mr. Bean" |
| C | Cate | -·-· | as in "Cate Blanchett" |
| Ch | CHYM | ---- | as in "CHYM FM" |
| D | dam | -·· | or "Dan" or many others |
| E | e | · | In mathematics, the base of the natural logarithm |
| F | cafe | ··-· | as in a French "cafe" |
| G | gym | --· | |
| H | ears | ···· | as in "ears" are used to hear |
| I | in | ·· | |
| J | edgy | ·--- | edj-ee |
| K | Kit | -·- | as in "Kit-Kat" |
| L | else | ·-·· | it even begins with "ell" |
| M | MM | -- | The year 2000 in Roman numerals: "MM" |
| N | No | -· | as in "Dr. No", the first James Bond movie |
| O | OPP | --- | The Ontario Provincial Police, or alternatively, OFF! |
| P | apps | ·--· | Something used on smart phones to practice Morse code |
| Q | plaq | --·- | The first four letters of "plaque"—ending in "q" |
| R | rye | ·-· | |
| S | sax | ··· | |
| T | T | - | as in "Mr. T", or just plain "t" |
| U | ump | ··- | as in umpire |
| V | veal | ···- | or "veil" |
| W | why | ·-- | perhaps sub-optimal |
| X | foxy | -··- | as in what a fox is, or perhaps Samantha Fox |
| Y | yell | -·-- | |
| Z | Zhou | --·· | The Zhou dynasty of China, or alternatively "Whiz" as in "Cheez Whiz" |
This mnemonic uses the same mapping from tall and short letters to dashes and dots. Rather than each word starting with the letter it represents, each word is positioned in the 26-word-long sentence according to the position of the letter it represents in the alphabet. [5]
my love life has a vibe, the same as edgy pop star DJ «Dr BBQ» adds — glad she won't cut away all good gold lyre!
In Czech, the mnemonic device to remember Morse codes lies in remembering words that begin with each appropriate letter and has long vowel (i.e. á é í ó ú ý) for every dash and short vowel (a e i o u y) for every dot. Additionally, some other theme-related sets of words have been thought out as Czech folklore.
| Letter | Morse Code | Czech word | Translation | Alternative (folklore) | Translation |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| A | ▄ ▄▄▄ | akát | acacia | absťák | withdrawal symptoms |
| B | ▄▄▄ ▄ ▄ ▄ | blýska·vi·ce | lightning storm | blít až do·ma | vomit until at home |
| C | ▄▄▄ ▄ ▄▄▄ ▄ | cílovníci | aiming sights | cíl je výčep | the target is the taproom |
| D | ▄▄▄ ▄ ▄ | dálni·ce | highway | dám jed·no | I'll have one (beer) |
| E | ▄ | erb | coat of arms | ex | one-sip-drinking |
| F | ▄ ▄ ▄▄▄ ▄ | Fi·lipíny | Philippines | Fer·net píše | the Fernet's pungent |
| G | ▄▄▄ ▄▄▄ ▄ | Grón·ská zem | the land of Greenland | grón·ský rum | rum of Greenland |
| H | ▄ ▄ ▄ ▄ | ho·lu·bi·ce | dove (female) | hru·ško·vi·ce | Pear brandy |
| Ch | ▄▄▄ ▄▄▄ ▄▄▄ ▄▄▄ | chléb nám dává | (he) gives us bread | chvát·ám k pí·pám | I rush to the faucets |
| I | ▄ ▄ | ib·is | Ibis | I·ron | Iron (window cleaning agent with alcohol content) |
| J | ▄ ▄▄▄ ▄▄▄ ▄▄▄ | jasmín bí·lý | white Jasmine | Jabčák bí·lý | White Apple brandy |
| K | ▄▄▄ ▄ ▄▄▄ | království | kingdom | kýbl vín | pot of wines |
| L | ▄ ▄▄▄ ▄ ▄ | lední hokej | ice hockey | likéreček | little liquor |
| M | ▄▄▄ ▄▄▄ | má·vá | waving | mží z-píp | it's sprinkling out of faucets |
| N | ▄▄▄ ▄ | ná rod | nation | návyk | habit |
| O | ▄▄▄ ▄▄▄ ▄▄▄ | ó náš pán | oh, our lord | ó můj líh | oh, my alcohol |
| P | ▄ ▄▄▄ ▄▄▄ ▄ | papír·níci | paper-makers | pivní tácek | beer coaster |
| Q | ▄▄▄ ▄▄▄ ▄ ▄▄▄ | kví·lí orkán | wailing hurricane | kví·lím ožrán | I wail drunked |
| R | ▄ ▄▄▄ ▄ | rarášek | imp | rumíček | little rum |
| S | ▄ ▄ ▄ | se·ke·ra | axe | sud je tu | the barrel's here |
| T | ▄▄▄ | tón | tone | té | tea |
| U | ▄ ▄ ▄▄▄ | u·čený | erudite | uch·lastán | fully loaded |
| V | ▄ ▄ ▄ ▄▄▄ | vy·vo·lený | the chosen one | vod·ka finská | Finnish vodka |
| W | ▄ ▄▄▄ ▄▄▄ | waltrův vůz | Walter's carriage | whiskou plout | to float through Whiskey |
| X | ▄▄▄ ▄ ▄ ▄▄▄ | Xéno·kratés | Xenocrates | k sýru burčák | new half-fermented wine with cheese |
| Y | ▄▄▄ ▄ ▄▄▄ ▄▄▄ | Ýgar má·vá | Ygar is waving | ý, jsem zlá·mán | ee, I'm a mess |
| Z | ▄▄▄ ▄▄▄ ▄ ▄ | Zrád·ná že·na | perfidious woman | zlí·skám se hned | I get stoned quickly |
In Polish, which does not distinguish long and short vowels, Morse mnemonics are also words or short phrases that begin with each appropriate letter, but dash is coded as a syllable containing an "o" (or "ó"), while a syllable containing another vowel codes for dot. For some letters, multiple mnemonics are in use; the table shows one example.
| Letter | Morse Code | Polish word | Translation |
|---|---|---|---|
| A | ▄ ▄▄▄ | azot | nitrogen |
| B | ▄▄▄ ▄ ▄ ▄ | botanika | botany |
| C | ▄▄▄ ▄ ▄▄▄ ▄ | co mi zrobisz | what will you do to me |
| D | ▄▄▄ ▄ ▄ | dolina | valley |
| E | ▄ | Ełk | Ełk |
| F | ▄ ▄ ▄▄▄ ▄ | filantropia | philanthropy |
| G | ▄▄▄ ▄▄▄ ▄ | gospoda | inn/tavern |
| H | ▄ ▄ ▄ ▄ | halabarda | halberd |
| Ch | ▄▄▄ ▄▄▄ ▄▄▄ ▄▄▄ | chlorowodór | hydrogen chloride |
| I | ▄ ▄ | igła | needle |
| J | ▄ ▄▄▄ ▄▄▄ ▄▄▄ | jednokonno | on/with one horse |
| K | ▄▄▄ ▄ ▄▄▄ | kolano | knee |
| L | ▄ ▄▄▄ ▄ ▄ | Leonidas | Leonidas |
| Ł | ▄ ▄▄▄ ▄ ▄ ▄▄▄ | [no mnemonic] | |
| M | ▄▄▄ ▄▄▄ | motor | motor |
| N | ▄▄▄ ▄ | noga | leg |
| O | ▄▄▄ ▄▄▄ ▄▄▄ | Opoczno | Opoczno |
| P | ▄ ▄▄▄ ▄▄▄ ▄ | Peloponez | Peloponnese |
| R | ▄ ▄▄▄ ▄ | retorta | retort |
| S | ▄ ▄ ▄ | Sahara | Sahara |
| T | ▄▄▄ | tor | track/rail line |
| U | ▄ ▄ ▄▄▄ | Ursynów | Ursynów |
| W | ▄ ▄▄▄ ▄▄▄ | winorośl | grapevine (plant) |
| Y | ▄▄▄ ▄ ▄▄▄ ▄▄▄ | York, Hull, Oxford | three British university towns |
| Z | ▄▄▄ ▄▄▄ ▄ ▄ | Złotoryja | Złotoryja |
Invented in 1922 by Zalman Cohen, a communication soldier in the Haganah organization.
| אות | קוד | קיצור | אות | קוד | קיצור |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| א | · − | אִמָּא | ל | · − · · | לִבַּבְתִּנִי |
| ב | − · · · | בַּשְּׁלִי לִי מִיץ | מ | − − | מַפָּ"ם |
| ג | − − · | גַּנָּבִים | נ | − · | נָעִים |
| ד | − · · | דָלִיתִי | ס | − · − · | סָבִי אָבִי |
| ה | − − − | הֲגָנָה | ע | · − − − | עִיר הַנַּמָּל |
| ו | · | וִי | פ | · − − · | פִּיל קַנָּדִי |
| ז | − − · · | זַמָּר לִירִי | צ | · − − | צִיטָטָה |
| ח | · · · · | חִכִּיתִי לִי | ק | − − · − | קַטָּרִינָה |
| ט | · · − | טִיףּ טִפָּה | ר | · − · | רִנָתִי |
| י | · · | יִידִישׁ | ש | · · · | שִׁירִי לִי |
| כ | − · − | כַּבִּירָה | ת | − | תָּו |
In Indonesia, one mnemonic commonly taught in Scouting is remembering words that begin with each appropriate letter and substituting the o vowel for every dash and other vowels (a, i, u, and e) for every dot.
| Letter | Morse Code | Word |
|---|---|---|
| A | ▄ ▄▄▄ | alok |
| B | ▄▄▄ ▄ ▄ ▄ | bocah kecil |
| C | ▄▄▄ ▄ ▄▄▄ ▄ | coca-cola |
| D | ▄▄▄ ▄ ▄ | doremi |
| E | ▄ | eh |
| F | ▄ ▄ ▄▄▄ ▄ | fanta loe |
| G | ▄▄▄ ▄▄▄ ▄ | gotongin |
| H | ▄ ▄ ▄ ▄ | hayamwuruk |
| I | ▄ ▄ | ipin |
| J | ▄ ▄▄▄ ▄▄▄ ▄▄▄ | jago loro |
| K | ▄▄▄ ▄ ▄▄▄ | komando |
| L | ▄ ▄▄▄ ▄ ▄ | lego dia |
| M | ▄▄▄ ▄▄▄ | motor |
| N | ▄▄▄ ▄ | nomer |
| O | ▄▄▄ ▄▄▄ ▄▄▄ | om toto |
| P | ▄ ▄▄▄ ▄▄▄ ▄ | pertolongan |
| Q | ▄▄▄ ▄▄▄ ▄ ▄▄▄ | qomokaro |
| R | ▄ ▄▄▄ ▄ | rasome |
| S | ▄ ▄ ▄ | samlekum |
| T | ▄▄▄ | tol |
| U | ▄ ▄ ▄▄▄ | upin-o |
| V | ▄ ▄ ▄ ▄▄▄ | versi gayo |
| W | ▄ ▄▄▄ ▄▄▄ | wahyoo |
| X | ▄▄▄ ▄ ▄ ▄▄▄ | xosendero |
| Y | ▄▄▄ ▄ ▄▄▄ ▄▄▄ | yosimono |
| Z | ▄▄▄ ▄▄▄ ▄ ▄ | zoro-aster |
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Some people find it easier to remember the does [sic] and dashes by picturing them as forming the letters— thus:— (p61)