CW Abbreviations
Morse is slow, so operators stopped spelling things out. Forty-five abbreviations carry most of an ordinary contact.
Nobody sends "thank you for the contact, my transmitter power is five watts and the weather here is rain". They send TNX FER QSO ES PWR 5W WX RAIN HR. Same meaning, a third of the time, and every operator on earth understands it.
The ones you need first
Again. Usually a request to repeat: PSE AGN.
PSE AGN
RPT
General call to any station. The invitation that starts a contact.
CQ CQ CQ DE DL1ABC
DE · K
See you later.
CUL 73
CU · 73
From. Stands before your own callsign: the other station DE you.
CQ DE DL1ABC
CQ
Long distance, a far-away station.
DX STATION
And. From the telegraphic sign for 'et'.
73 ES GL
Fine business: good, excellent. The most common praise in CW.
FB OM
UFB
Good afternoon. Also 'go ahead' depending on context.
GA OM
GM · GE
Good evening.
GE OM
GM · GN
Good morning.
GM OM
GA · GE
Here.
HR WX IS FB
How. Almost always HW CPY? - how do you copy me?
HW CPY?
CPY
Number.
NR 599
RST
Old man: any male operator, whatever his age.
TNX OM
YL · XYL
Please.
PSE AGN
AGN
The station equipment, the transceiver.
RIG IS FT817
ANT · PWR
Repeat, or report depending on context.
PSE RPT
AGN
Sorry.
SRI QRM
Thanks. The most common of the three ways to say it.
TNX FER QSO
TKS · TU
Thank you. Often the last word before signing off.
TU 73
TNX
Your, or you are.
UR RST 599
RST
Very.
VY FB
Weather. A standard part of a relaxed contact.
WX IS RAIN
Young lady: any female operator, whatever her age.
YL OP
OM · XYL
Best regards. Never 73s or best 73 - it is already plural in meaning.
73 ES CUL
88
How they are used
Abbreviations are not sent as separate messages; they run together as words. A typical exchange looks like this:
CQ CQ CQ DE DL1ABC DL1ABC K DL1ABC DE G3XYZ UR RST 599 NAME TOM QTH LONDON HW? TNX FER RPRT TOM FB SIG HR RIG IS FT817 PWR 5W ANT DIPOLE TNX FER QSO 73 ES CUL DE DL1ABC SK
Three rules cover nearly everything you will hear:
- Vowels go first. TNX, PSE, RPT, WX - what remains is still readable because the consonants carry the word.
- Numbers stand for whole phrases. 73 is best regards, 88 is love and kisses. Never send 73s or best 73: the number already is the greeting.
- Prosigns are not abbreviations. AR, K, KN and SK are sent as one run of signals without the gap between letters, and they steer the contact rather than carrying meaning. They have their own page.
The complete list
Again. Usually a request to repeat: PSE AGN.
PSE AGN
RPT
Antenna.
ANT IS DIPOLE
PWR · RIG
Before. Often about an earlier contact: WKD U B4.
By the way.
I confirm.
CFM QSL
QSL
Closing down. The last thing sent before switching off the station.
73 ES CL
SK
Copy, as in receiving and understanding.
HW CPY?
HW
General call to any station. The invitation that starts a contact.
CQ CQ CQ DE DL1ABC
DE · K
See you.
CU AGN
CUL
See you later.
CUL 73
CU · 73
From. Stands before your own callsign: the other station DE you.
CQ DE DL1ABC
CQ
Long distance, a far-away station.
DX STATION
And. From the telegraphic sign for 'et'.
73 ES GL
Fine business: good, excellent. The most common praise in CW.
FB OM
UFB
For.
TNX FER CALL
TNX
Good afternoon. Also 'go ahead' depending on context.
GA OM
GM · GE
Good evening.
GE OM
GM · GN
Good luck.
GL ES 73
73
Good morning.
GM OM
GA · GE
Good night.
GN 73
GE
Laughter. Sent as HI HI - it sounds like a chuckle in Morse.
HI HI
Here.
HR WX IS FB
How. Almost always HW CPY? - how do you copy me?
HW CPY?
CPY
Number.
NR 599
RST
Now.
NW QSY
Old man: any male operator, whatever his age.
TNX OM
YL · XYL
Operator, also used for one's own name.
OP IS TOM
Please.
PSE AGN
AGN
Power, transmitter output.
PWR 5W
RIG · ANT
The station equipment, the transceiver.
RIG IS FT817
ANT · PWR
Repeat, or report depending on context.
PSE RPT
AGN
Receiver.
TX
Sorry.
SRI QRM
Thanks.
TKS OM
TNX · TU
Thanks. The most common of the three ways to say it.
TNX FER QSO
TKS · TU
Thank you. Often the last word before signing off.
TU 73
TNX
Transmitter.
RX
Ultra fine business: outstanding.
UFB SIG
FB
Your, or you are.
UR RST 599
RST
Very.
VY FB
Weather. A standard part of a relaxed contact.
WX IS RAIN
Wife or female spouse of the operator.
XYL IS QRV
YL · OM
Young lady: any female operator, whatever her age.
YL OP
OM · XYL
Best regards. Never 73s or best 73 - it is already plural in meaning.
73 ES CUL
88
Love and kisses. Sent to or from a partner, not to everyone.
88 ES 73
73
Where these come from
The meanings here were taken from two independent sources and only entries on which both agree were published: the handbook Ethics and Operating Procedures for the Radio Amateur by ON4UN and ON4WW, issued by the ARRL, and the Wikipedia article on Morse code abbreviations. Where a term is common in one place and unknown in the other, it was left out.
That matters more than it sounds. Abbreviation lists on the web copy from each other, and a mistake in one of them travels for years. The list here is deliberately shorter than the longest ones you will find - it holds what is actually sent.
Frequently asked questions
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Do I have to learn all of them?
No. The twenty-five marked above cover an ordinary contact. The rest you will pick up by hearing them.
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Why 73 and not "best regards"?
Because it is two characters instead of twelve. The number comes from the Western Union telegraph code of the 1850s, where a whole table of numbers stood for common phrases. Only 73 and 88 survived into amateur radio.
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Is it wrong to write "73s"?
It is a corruption, and it will be noticed. 73 already means best regards - the plural is inside the number.
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What is the difference between TNX, TKS and TU?
None in meaning. TNX is the most common, TKS is the same thing spelled differently, and TU tends to end a contact rather than thank you for something specific.