Last updated 26 August 2026
How the spacing works
A single space separates one letter's dots and dashes from the next. A forward slash marks the gap between words — without it, a whole message would run together as one unreadable string. The sound button reconstructs proper Morse timing: a short beep for each dot, a longer one for each dash, with gaps between letters and words, synthesized live rather than played from a recording.
Timing is what makes Morse readable
Morse is not just dots and dashes; the gaps carry as much meaning. A dash lasts three times a dot, the space between symbols in a letter is one dot long, between letters three, and between words seven. Get the spacing wrong and the same string of symbols decodes into completely different letters — which is why operators talk about rhythm rather than characters.
The alphabet here is International Morse, standard worldwide for letters A to Z, digits and common punctuation. It does not cover every character you can type: letters with accents and non-Latin scripts have no agreed representation, and anything unmapped is skipped rather than guessed at.
Decoding needs the spacing preserved in what you paste. A single space between letters and a slash or triple space between words is the usual convention; a run of symbols with no gaps cannot be split back into words reliably by any tool.
Common questions
How do spaces work in Morse code?
A single space separates the dots and dashes of one letter from the next. A forward slash ( / ) marks a space between words — without it, a string of Morse would be unreadable as separate words.
What does the sound button actually play?
A short beep for each dot, a longer beep for each dash, with authentic timing gaps between letters and words — synthesized directly in the browser, not a recorded audio file.
Can it handle numbers and punctuation?
Yes — all 26 letters, the digits 0-9, and common punctuation like periods, commas and question marks all have defined Morse codes and are supported.