Letters A to Z
The Morse code for A to Z has been stable since the 19th century, and the ITU formalised the international standard in 1932. Read the table top to bottom, then cover the right column and try to write the codes from memory.
- A .- B -... C -.-. D -.. E .
- F ..-. G --. H .... I .. J .---
- K -.- L .-.. M -- N -. O ---
- P .--. Q --.- R .-. S ... T -
- U ..- V ...- W .-- X -..- Y -.-- Z --..
Numbers
Numbers are wonderfully regular. Each one is five symbols long. Zero is five dashes, and each step up adds a dot at the front and removes a dash from the end. If you can count, you can reconstruct the whole set.
- 1 .---- 2 ..--- 3 ...-- 4 ....- 5 .....
- 6 -.... 7 --... 8 ---.. 9 ----. 0 -----
Punctuation and symbols
You will rarely need these outdoors, but they show up in amateur radio and in exams. The common ones are worth knowing because they are used in addresses and coordinates.
- Period .-.-.- Comma --..-- Question mark ..--..
- Slash -..-. Colon ---... Semicolon -.-.-.
- Apostrophe .----. Hyphen -....- Parentheses -.--. / -.--.-
- At sign .--.-. Ampersand .-... Dollar ...-..-
Memory tricks that actually work
The classic trick is to group letters by rhythm. Letters made entirely of dots are E, I, S, H — each one adds a dot to the previous. Letters made entirely of dashes are T, M, O — each adds a dash.
The opposite pairs are useful too. A is dot-dash and N is dash-dot. B is dash-dot-dot-dot and D is dash-dot-dot. Learn one, and the other is usually a small step away.
For the rest, say the pattern out loud as a word. “Di-dah” for A, “dah-di-di-dit” for B. Rhythm beats visual memorization for most people.
Where the letters came from
Morse was designed for telegraph operators, not for ease of learning. The most common letters in English got the shortest codes, which is why E and T are single symbols. That logic still helps today: if you are stranded and need to send something short, the most common letters will be the fastest to send.
