Morse Code Alphabet

Open the full Morse Code chart

Letters A to Z

The 26 letters are the core of International Morse Code, and they are the only part most beginners need at first. Each letter uses between one and four elements. E is a single dot and T is a single dash, while letters like J, Q and Y use four elements and take longer to send and to recognise.

It helps to group letters by sound rather than by alphabet order. Short letters like E, I, S and H are all dots, long letters like T, M and O are all dashes, and mixed letters like A, N, D and U combine the two. Practising inside one group at a time makes the differences between similar letters, such as S and H, much clearer than drilling the whole alphabet at random.

In code form the letters run: 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 -.-- and Z --.. . If any of those look unfamiliar, open the chart page and listen to each one before trying to memorise it from text alone.

Numbers 0 to 9

Numbers follow a neat pattern that makes them easier than they first look. Every digit uses exactly five elements. The numbers 1 to 5 start with dots and end with dashes, and the numbers 6 to 0 mirror that: they start with dashes and end with dots. So 1 is .---- , 2 is ..--- , 3 is ...-- , 4 is ....- and 5 is ..... , while 6 is -.... , 7 is --... , 8 is ---.. , 9 is ----. and 0 is ----- .

That mirror pattern is worth learning as a pattern, not as ten separate facts. Once you know that 5 is all dots and 0 is all dashes, the digits in between fall into place by counting how many dots or dashes lead the group. Numbers appear in callsigns, contest exchanges and times, so they are worth learning soon after the letters, even if you rarely send them in ordinary chat.

Punctuation and special marks

International Morse Code includes 18 common punctuation marks in the set used on this site, including the full stop .-.-.- , the comma --..-- , the question mark ..--.. , the apostrophe .----. , the exclamation mark -.-.-- , the slash -..-. , the hyphen -....- , the opening and closing brackets -.--. and -.--.- , the ampersand .-... , the colon ---... , the semicolon -.-.-. , the equals sign -...- , the plus sign .-.-. , the underscore ..--.- , the dollar sign ...-..- and the quotation mark .-..-. .

You do not need all 18 at once. Learn the full stop, comma and question mark first, because they shape real sentences, then add the slash and hyphen, which appear in callsigns and web-style text. The rest can wait until you meet them in a real message, which is a far better teacher than a list studied in isolation.

How to use the chart well

A chart is a reference, not a learning method on its own. Use it to check a letter you are unsure about, to print a copy for your desk, or to follow along while you listen. Then close it and test yourself with flashcards, because reading a pattern off a chart and recognising it by ear are different skills, and only the second one works at radio speed.

Keep the timing rules beside the chart in your mind: one unit for a dot, three for a dash, one unit inside a letter, three units between letters and seven between words. A chart without those gaps is only half the alphabet, and most copying mistakes come from gaps, not from dots and dashes themselves.

Frequently asked questions