The Letter E in Morse Code
E is ·: one short di and no long dah, dit. It lasts 1 units.
·ditFacts about E
- Code
·· dit- Elements
- 1 — one dot, no dash
- Length
- 1 units + 3 before the next letter
- Time
- 0.06 s at 20 WPM · 0.15 s at 8 WPM
- Tree
- E · below it: I, A
- Frequency
- 12.49% of English letters, 1st of 262
- Koch order
- 5th sign of the course
- Spelling
- Echo
- Same signal
- Е in Russian Morse · Ε in Greek Morse · ヘ in Wabun
§ 1Don’t confuse E with
- Ethis letterdit
- Tfirst element differsdah
- Ione element longerdi-dit
- Aone element longerdi-dah
- None element longerdah-dit
Blue marks the elements that differ from E.
§ 2How to remember E
egg (·) — E is the shortest sound in the code; hold it three times longer and you have T (−).
§ 3Words with E
§ 4Questions about E
- Why is E just one dot in Morse code?
- E is the most common letter in English, so it was given the shortest possible code. The usual account credits Alfred Vail, who matched short codes to frequent letters so that everyday text took less time to send.
- How do I hear E at fast speeds?
- Listen for a click rather than a tone. At working speeds E is over almost as soon as it starts, so keep your attention on the gaps: a lone dot between two letter pauses is always E.
- Can E stand for a number in Morse?
- Yes, in cut numbers E is often sent in place of 5, although many operators send 5 in full. You will meet it mostly in contest reports, where speed matters more than spelling.
- Which Morse signs begin like E?
- Every sign that opens with a dot, from A and I to the figure 1, starts with the same sound as E. Morse trees hang all of them on the dot side, so a clean E helps you begin half the alphabet correctly.