Morse Code
Translate between Latin text and Morse
International Morse code represents each letter, digit and a handful of punctuation marks as a short sequence of dots and dashes. The timing is part of the code rather than an afterthought: a dash lasts three dot units, the gap inside a character is one unit, the gap between characters is three, and the gap between words is seven. Get the ratios right and the message is readable at any speed.
The version standardised by the ITU is the one in use today, and it differs from the original American Morse that ran on landline telegraphs. It is still used in amateur radio, in aviation and marine navigation beacons that identify themselves in code, and as an accessibility input method. This translator converts in both directions and can play the result as audio so you can hear the rhythm.
How to use it
- Type text or paste MorseThe direction is detected from what you enter: letters become code, dots and dashes become letters. Use a space between characters and a slash between words.
- Read the outputCharacters with no Morse equivalent are flagged rather than silently dropped, so you can see exactly which parts of a message will not survive the round trip.
- Play it backAudio playback uses the standard timing ratios at a speed you set in words per minute, which is the only real way to check that a sequence sounds right.
Frequently asked questions
What is SOS in Morse code?
Three dots, three dashes, three dots — sent as one unbroken sequence with no gaps between the letters, which is what distinguishes the distress signal from the letters S, O and S sent separately. It was chosen because the pattern is unmistakable, not because it abbreviates any phrase; "save our ship" is a later invention.
Does Morse code handle lower case?
No. The code has one symbol per letter and draws no distinction between upper and lower case, so text is normally shown in capitals. Anything you type is treated case-insensitively, and decoded output comes back in a single case.
What do the slashes in the output mean?
A single space separates characters and a forward slash separates words. Without that convention the boundaries are ambiguous, because Morse has no fixed symbol length — the same dots and dashes can be read as different letters depending on where you place the gaps.
What does words per minute mean here?
Morse speed is measured against the reference word PARIS, which is exactly fifty dot units long including its trailing word gap. Twenty words per minute therefore means a thousand dot units a minute. It is a convention that lets two operators agree on speed without measuring individual dots.
Can Morse code represent accented letters or emoji?
A few accented characters have regional codes, but there is no universal set, and there is nothing at all for emoji or most punctuation. Anything without an equivalent is reported as unmappable so you can rewrite the message rather than send something that will not decode.