Morse Code Translator

What is Morse code?

Morse code is a telecommunication method that encodes text characters as standardised sequences of two signal durations: dots (short) and dashes (long). Developed by Samuel Morse and Alfred Vail in the 1830s and 1840s to send messages over electrical telegraph wires, Morse code was the world's first major digital communication system — it reduced language to a binary sequence long before digital computers.

The International Morse Code (ITU standard) assigns a unique sequence of dots and dashes to each letter of the Latin alphabet, digits 0–9, and common punctuation. Letters are separated by a space (gap equal to three dots). Words are separated by a longer gap (seven dots). The most famous Morse sequence is SOS (···−−−···), the international distress signal, chosen because it is easy to recognise — not because it stands for "Save Our Souls".

While Morse code is no longer used for commercial communication, it remains relevant for amateur radio operators (ham radio), where certain license levels require Morse proficiency. It is also used in accessibility contexts — some people with limited motor ability use a single switch or eye blink to send Morse code as an input method.

Common mistakes

• Spaces between words — In text-to-Morse, separate words with a / or double space in the Morse output. This tool uses / to separate words in the Morse representation.
• Prosigns — Morse prosigns (procedural signals like SK for end of contact, AR for end of message) are special multi-character sequences without word spaces between them. This basic translator focuses on standard characters only.

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