Chapter 8 Lingo
Ham radio is no different than any other human activity: There’s a bunch of specialized lingo. Actually, ham radio may have more lingo, jargon, and acronyms than most hobbies. But fear not. Learning to talk the talk is part of what makes joining a new community fun. And with ham radio, communicating (in one form or another) is the main point. As an international hobby with a 100+ year history, learning how to ‘speak ham’ is one of the best ways to join our community.
By the way, it is ham radio not HAM radio. Ham is not an abbreviation for something. Also, some new folks might say, “I’m interested in ham; or I’m thinking about getting into HAM.” That sounds like they are interested in an edible pork product, not our glorious hobby. Most hams are forgiving people who want newcomers to join our ranks. But saying certain things is like writing a scarlet H in the middle of your forehead.
Phonetic alphabet
Amateurs across the globe have agreed on a standard phonetic alphabet–a way of spelling out callsigns and words that makes them more easily understood when propagation might not be ideal.
The phonetic alphabet is often used on HF, but rarely on VHF or UHF FM. That’s because signals on VHF or UHF FM are often heard through repeaters and are usually very readable. So, if you’re transmitting on VHF or UHF through a repeater, you don’t need to use the phonetic alphabet.
Some hams use different phonetic equivalents from the ones below, like “Wacko Three Tiny Microphone” for W3TM. As a rule of thumb, it’s better practice and the more common custom to use the standard phonetic alphabet. Sometimes under difficult operating conditions, like a busy contest, you might say “Whiskey Three TEXAS MASSACHUSETTS” or something unusual rather than “Whiskey Three Tango Mike”–if the other operator can’t quite copy the last part of your callsign after you’ve tried the standard phonetics several times.
| Letter | Phonetic equivalent |
|---|---|
| A | Alpha |
| B | Bravo |
| C | Charlie |
| D | Delta |
| E | Echo |
| F | Foxtrot |
| G | Golf |
| H | Hotel |
| I | India |
| J | Juliet |
| K | Kilo |
| L | Lima |
| M | Mike |
| N | November |
| O | Oscar |
| P | Papa (accent on 2nd syllable) |
| Q | Quebec |
| R | Romeo |
| S | Sierra |
| T | Tango |
| U | Uniform |
| V | Victor |
| W | Whiskey |
| X | X-ray |
| Y | Yankee |
| Z | Zulu |
Glossary
CSCE
Certificate of Successful Completion of (an amateur radio licensing) Examination.
CQ
An operating sign meant to communicate that the sender is calling on any amateur station to respond.
CW
Continuous wave. A type of RF modulation that involves turning a continuous carrier frequency on and off. CW is also another name for sending Morse code.
DX
Long distance communications. A ham calling “CQ DX” is saying that she prefers to talk to distant stations, usually in another country.
Extra
Amateur Extra class license.
FCC
Federal Commmunications Commission. The U.S. Government agency charged with regulating radio communications. The FCC grants amateur radio operators licenses.
FT4
A digital mode of communication that is part of the WSJT-X software and has a 7.5 s cycle, half that of FT8.
FT8
A digital mode of communication that is part of the WSJT-X software and has a 15 s cycle, twice that of FT4.
General
The intermediate amateur radio service license class.
HF
High frequency. A set of frequencies between 3 MHz and 30 [MHz.] The 80/75m, 60m, 40m, 30m, 20m, 15m, 17m, 15m, 12m, and 10m ham bands are HF bands. HF signals can propagate for long distances under common atmospheric conditions.
ITU
International Telecommunications Union. The ITU has divided the world into three geographic regions (ITU Regions). Region 2 comprises the Americas.
By <a href=“https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/User:Chumwa” class=“extiw” title=“de:User:Chumwa”>Maximilian Dörrbecker</a> (<a href=“https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/User:Chumwa” class=“extiw” title=“de:User:Chumwa”>Chumwa</a>) - <span class=“int-own-work” lang=“en”>Own work</span>, using <a href=“//commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:International_Telecommunication_Union_region.svg” title=“File:International Telecommunication Union region.svg”>this file</a> by <a href=“//commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/User:Denelson83” title=“User:Denelson83”>Denelson83</a>, CC BY-SA 2.5, Link
kHz
Kilohertz. A unit of frequency. 1 kHz is 1 thousand cycles/sec. The ‘H’ is capitalized because it is named after Henrich Hertz.
\(LiFePO_4\)
Lithium Iron Phosphate. A type of rechargeable battery. Sometimes this is pronounced “life-po”.
mA
Milliamperes. A unit of current. 1/1,000 of an Ampere (A).
mF
Microfarad. A unit of capacitance. 1/1,000,000 of a Farad. \(\mu F\) is another abbreviation for microfarad using the Greek letter mu (\(\mu\)).
MHz
Megahertz. A unit of frequency. 1 MHz is 1 million cycles/sec or 1 million Hertz (Hz). The ‘H’ is capitalized because it is named after Henrich Hertz.
P
Power. \(P=IE=I^2R\). Power is usually measured in watts (w) or some multiple of watts.
PM
Phase modulation. A type of RF modulation that produces a signal similar to frequency modulation (FM).
POTA
Parks on the Air. An organized activity where hams set up and operate portable stations from parks and related entities all over the world. See https://pota.app for more information and the POTA/SOTA quest for a hands-on activity.
PSK
Phase shift keying. A type of signal modulation. PSK is used in a number of digital communication modes.
PTT
Push to talk. A button and associated circuit that allows a transmitter or transceiver to transmit when pressed.
RG-213
A common type of coax used with low to high power at HF, VHF, and UHF frequencies. RG-213 has lower loss than RG-58.
SSB
Single Sideband. A mode of RF modulation where one half of the two symmetric halves of an amplitude-modulated (AM) signal is sent. Upper (USB) or lower (LSB) sideband are the most common modes for sending voice (phone).
SOTA
Summits on the Air. An organized activity where hams operate from mountain summits all over the world. See https://www.sota.org.uk for more information about the program and the POTA/SOTA quest for a related hands-on activity.
SWR
Standing Wave Ratio. The ratio of forward power to reflected power. High SWR (> 3:1 or more) means that the impedance of your antenna is a poor match to the impedance of your transmitter. This doesn’t matter very much for receiving signals, but it does pose a potential problem if you decide to transmit.
Technician
The introductory amateur radio service license class.
UHF
Ultra-high frequency. A set of frequencies between 300 MHz and 3 GHz (3,000 MHz). The 70cm band is the most commonly used UHF ham band.
Also, a type of coax connector also called PL-259 (male) and SO-239 (female).
UTC
Coordinated Universal Time. Primary worldwide time standard that does not adjust seasonally. See Wikipedia.
VHF
Very high frequency. A set of frequencies between 30 and 300 MHz. The 6m, 2m, and 1.25cm bands are VHF bands.
Q-codes
QST
A message for any and all radio amateurs. Also, the name of the monthly magazine provided to members of the ARRL.