Walkie-talkie lingo, radio codes and the NATO alphabet

One radio call, two ways

The same short call, first in radio procedure, then the way most crews on business radios and PoC apps say it. Both work. Procedure is for busy or noisy channels and mixed teams; short everyday words are fine for a small crew that knows each other.

By the book

Unit 3
Base, THIS IS Unit 3. OVER.
Base
Unit 3, THIS IS Base. OVER.
Unit 3
Truck at gate B, plate Kilo Lima Seven Two. OVER.
Base
SAY AGAIN all after plate. OVER.
Unit 3
I SAY AGAIN Kilo Lima Seven Two. OVER.
Base
ROGER. Send it to dock FOW-er. OVER.
Unit 3
WILCO. OUT.

On a work channel

Unit 3
Base, Unit 3.
Base
Go ahead.
Unit 3
Truck at gate B, plate KL72.
Base
Say again the plate?
Unit 3
Kilo Lima Seven Two.
Base
Copy. Send it to dock 4.
Unit 3
Copy, on it.

In both versions the plate is spelled with the alphabet, ROGER and COPY mean “I got it”, and nobody says “over and out”.

Everyday walkie-talkie lingo

What crews say on business and family radios. Radio makers teach these words; they are custom, not procedure, and several differ from the official meaning.16 17 18

Term	Meaning	Example
OVER AND OUT	Not a standard proword. OVER asks for a reply and OUT says none is expected, so together they contradict. Pick one: OVER to hand the channel back, OUT to close.1	Say 'OUT' (not 'over and out') when the conversation is finished.
COPY / COPY THAT	I received and understood you.	Meet at dock 2. - Copy that.
DO YOU COPY?	Can you hear me / did you get that?	Dock 2 at noon, do you copy?
ROGER THAT	Message understood (everyday form of ROGER).	Roger that.
AFFIRMATIVE	Yes. Used instead of 'yes' because short words get lost in noise.	Is the gate open? - Affirmative.
NEGATORY	No (informal form of NEGATIVE).	Gate open? - Negatory.
GO AHEAD	I'm listening, send your message.	Unit 10. - Go ahead, Unit 3. Over.
COME IN (name)	Are you there? Open a call and check the other person can hear you.	Come in, Joe.
[caller] FOR [called]	Call format used by Midland: say your name, 'for', then the name of the person you want.	Anthony for Muriel.
GO FOR [name]	Answer to a call: give your own name and say go ahead.	Go for Muriel.
WHAT'S YOUR 20?	Where are you? Short for 10-20 (location).	Joe, what's your 20? - At the loading dock.
EYES ON	I can see the person or thing we're talking about.	Eyes on the delivery truck.
ON IT	I'm working on what you asked.	Table 4 needs cleaning. - On it.
READ YOU LOUD AND CLEAR	Reply to a radio check: I hear you well and the signal is strong.19	Radio check. - Read you loud and clear.
MIC CHECK	Midland: a hint that the other person should check their radio because their message came through garbled.	Mic check, you are breaking up.
BREAK, BREAK	Everyday use: I'm interrupting with urgent traffic.	Break break break, medical emergency at gate 2.
CHECK	Everyday use: got it, understood.20	Gate B at noon. - Check.
DO YOU READ (ME)?	Are you there / can you hear me? Please reply.20	Unit 3, do you read me?

Procedure words

The official words of radio procedure, as the Allied military procedure ACP 125(G) and the ICAO aviation rules define them.1 2 OVER hands the channel to the other person; OUT ends the conversation, so saying both contradicts itself.

Starting, passing and ending a call

Term	Meaning	Example
THIS IS	The call sign after these words is the station that is transmitting.	Unit 10, THIS IS Base.
OVER	End of my turn and I expect a reply. Go ahead and transmit.	Unit 3 to Unit 10, are you at the dock? OVER.
OUT	End of my transmission and no answer is required or expected.	Unit 10 to Unit 3, received, back at 5 pm. OUT.
WAIT	I must pause for up to five seconds; nobody else transmits meanwhile.	WAIT.
WAIT OUT	I need longer than five seconds; the channel is free meanwhile and I will call you back.	WAIT OUT.
STAND BY	Official aviation sense: wait, I will call you; it is not a yes or a no. Everyday sense: I heard you, I am busy and will get back to you.	Stand by, one minute.
BREAK	Official: marks the split between the text of a message and its other parts. Casual use differs, see note.	...Unit 3 to Unit 10. BREAK. Load 40 crates. OVER.

Answering and confirming

Term	Meaning	Example
ROGER	I have received your last transmission. It confirms receipt, not agreement or 'yes'.	Base, Unit 3: ROGER.
WILCO	Received, understood and will comply. Only the person who got the order says it.	Unit 3: Hold at gate B. - Unit 7: WILCO.
AFFIRM	Aviation proword for 'yes'.	Tower: Do you have the traffic? Pilot: AFFIRM.
NEGATIVE	No. In aviation it can also mean permission not granted, that is not correct, or not capable.	Gate open? NEGATIVE.
CORRECT	You are right, or what you sent is right.	Read back: 'Gate B'. - CORRECT.
CONFIRM	Please verify what I asked about.	CONFIRM gate B open?
ACKNOWLEDGE	Confirm that you received and understood this message.	ACKNOWLEDGE.
UNABLE	I cannot comply with your request or instruction (usually followed by the reason).	UNABLE, battery low.
NOTHING HEARD	No reply received from the station I called.	Unit 7, NOTHING HEARD.

Repeating, spelling and fixing mistakes

Term	Meaning	Example
SAY AGAIN	Repeat what you just said (all or part). Used instead of 'repeat'.	SAY AGAIN, all after 'gate'. OVER.
I SAY AGAIN	I am repeating my transmission or the part you asked for.	I SAY AGAIN, gate B. OVER.
REPEAT (avoid)	Avoid on the radio as a request to resend. In artillery and naval-gunfire procedure REPEAT means 'fire the same mission again', so say SAY AGAIN.15	Say 'SAY AGAIN', not 'repeat'.
CORRECTION	I made a mistake in this transmission; the right version follows.	Meet at gate A, CORRECTION, gate B.
DISREGARD	Ignore what I just said.	DISREGARD.
READ BACK	Send my message back to me exactly as you received it.	Gate code 4 7 1. READ BACK.
I SPELL	The next word will be spelled out letter by letter with the phonetic alphabet.	Gate X-ray, I SPELL Xray Alfa Romeo.
FIGURES	Numbers follow, said digit by digit (used in poor conditions).	FIGURES two zero zero.
WORDS TWICE	Conditions are bad: send (or I am sending) every phrase twice.	WORDS TWICE.
SPEAK SLOWER	You are talking too fast.	SPEAK SLOWER.

Radio checks and signal reports

Term	Meaning	Example
RADIO CHECK	How strong and how readable am I? A request for a signal report.	Base, Unit 3, RADIO CHECK. OVER.
LOUD AND CLEAR	Strong signal and excellent readability. Official parts: LOUD (strength) and CLEAR (readability); plain ROGER after a radio check also means loud and clear.	Unit 3, Base: LOUD AND CLEAR.
LOUD, GOOD, WEAK, VERY WEAK, FADINGSignal-strength words	Standard words for how strong the other station is: very strong, good, weak, very weak, strength comes and goes.	WEAK BUT READABLE.
CLEAR, READABLE, UNREADABLE, DISTORTED, WITH INTERFERENCE, INTERMITTENTReadability words	Standard words for how readable the other station is: excellent, satisfactory, cannot read, signal distorted, interference, breaking up.	LOUD BUT DISTORTED.
READABILITY 1-5	Aviation readability scale: 1 unreadable, 2 readable now and then, 3 readable with difficulty, 4 readable, 5 perfectly readable.	Tower: Readability 5.

Distress, urgency and safety calls

Term	Meaning	Example
MAYDAY	International voice distress signal: grave and imminent danger, immediate help needed.4	MAYDAY MAYDAY MAYDAY, THIS IS SWAMPER SWAMPER SWAMPER...
PAN-PAN	International urgency signal: a very urgent message about the safety of a vessel, vehicle or person, but not grave and imminent danger.4	PAN-PAN PAN-PAN PAN-PAN, all stations...
SECURITE	International safety signal: an important navigational or weather warning follows.4	SECURITE SECURITE SECURITE, all stations...
SILENCE (SEELONCE)	Military: stop transmitting on this net at once until silence is lifted. Maritime: SEELONCE MAYDAY imposes silence during a distress.4	SEELONCE MAYDAY.

10-codes

Numbered shorthand from US police radio, first used in 1937 and standardised by APCO in 1974 (Project 14).12 13 There is no single list: each agency kept its own, so the same number can mean different things.14 The highlighted codes mean the same in almost every list. US federal guidance asks for plain language when several agencies work together and encourages it every day; it does not ban 10-codes.10 11

The APCO list

Term	Meaning	Example
10-1	Signal weak	10-1, you are breaking up.
10-2	Signal good	10-2, loud and clear.
10-3	Stop transmitting
10-4	Affirmative (OK). Most lists read it as: message received	Dispatch: Meet Unit 5 at the depot. - 10-4.
10-5	Relay (to)
10-6	Busy
10-7	Out of service	Unit 3, 10-7 for lunch.
10-8	In service	Unit 3, 10-8.
10-9	Say again	Unit 3, 10-9 your last.
10-10	Negative
10-11	[Unit] on duty
10-12	Stand by (stop)
10-13	Existing conditions
10-14	Message / information
10-15	Message delivered
10-16	Reply to message
10-17	En route	Unit 3, 10-17 to the dock (closest sourced code for 'on my way').
10-18	Urgent
10-19	(In) contact
10-20	Location	Unit 3, what's your 10-20?
10-21	Call (...) by phone	Unit 3, 10-21 the office.
10-22	Disregard
10-23	Arrived at scene
10-24	Assignment completed
10-25	Report to (meet) ...
10-26	Estimated arrival time
10-27	License / permit information
10-28	Ownership information
10-29	Records check
10-30	Danger / caution
10-31	Pick up
10-32	[Number] units needed
10-33	Help me quick	10-33, 10-33, Unit 3 needs help.
10-34	Time

Extra codes in walkie-talkie guides

Radio makers print a few more for CB and business radio users.16

Term	Meaning	Example
10-41	Please switch to channel ...
10-44	I have a message for you
10-50	Break channel
10-60	What is the next message number?
10-62	Unable to copy, use phone

Q-codes

Three-letter signals from telegraphy that radio amateurs use on voice too. Sent as a question (QTH?) they ask; sent alone they answer.6 9

Term	Meaning	Example
QRG	Exact frequency. ITU: 'Will you tell me my exact frequency?' / 'Your exact frequency is ... kHz (MHz)'. Ham: the frequency itself.	What is my QRG?
QRK	Readability (intelligibility) of signals, scale 1-5. ITU: 1 bad ... 5 excellent. Ham: same as the R in an RS report.	You are QRK 5 and QSA 5.
QRL	Are you busy / is this frequency in use? Answer: I am busy, do not interfere.	QRL? before calling CQ.
QRM	Interference from other stations. ITU: 'Is my transmission being interfered with?' scale 1 nil to 5 extremely.	Heavy QRM on 20 m.
QRN	Static / natural noise. ITU: 'Are you troubled by static?' scale 1 to 5.	QRN is bad tonight.
QRO	ITU: increase transmitter power (question: shall I increase power?). Ham use as high-power operation, the opposite of QRP, is general usage that none of the pages opened defines.	Going QRO for the contest.
QRP	ITU: decrease transmitter power. Ham use: low-power operation. ON4UN defines a QRP station as 5 W max on CW or 10 W max on SSB.	Calling CQ QRP.
QRQ	Send faster (CW).	QRQ please.
QRS	Send more slowly (CW).	QRS please.
QRT	Stop sending. Ham use: shutting the station down / leaving the air.	I'm going QRT.
QRU	Have you anything for me? Answer: I have nothing for you.	QRU?
QRV	Are you ready? / I am ready. Ham use: being on the air and available.	QRV on 146.52.
QRX	When will you call me again? Ham use: wait / stand by.	QRX 5 minutes.
QRZ	Who is calling me? Ham use: ask a caller to identify again. Never use to end a CQ.	QRZ? Station calling, say again.
QSA	Signal strength, scale 1 scarcely perceptible to 5 very good.	Your signal is QSA 4.
QSB	Your signals are fading.	Signals are QSB.
QSK	I can hear you between my signals; break in on my transmission (full break-in).	QSK operation.
QSL	I acknowledge receipt / I confirm. A QSL card is the printed confirmation of a contact.	QSL, thanks for the call.
QSO	A radio contact (conversation) between two or more stations. ITU sense: can you communicate with ... direct or by relay.	Nice QSO with Japan.
QSP	Relay a message to a third station.	QSP to W1AW.
QST	Ham-only: general call to all amateurs and ARRL members (in effect 'CQ ARRL'). Also the name of ARRL's magazine.	QST QST QST de W1AW.
QSX	I am listening on ... (listen on ...).	QSX 7.200.
QSY	Change frequency.	Let's QSY to 146.55.
QSZ	Send each word or group twice (or more).	QSZ.
QTC	I have messages for you / how many messages have you to send?	QTC 2.
QTH	Location of the station. ITU maritime sense: position in latitude and longitude. Ham use: the place where the station is located (city, village).	My QTH is Leeds.
QTR	Correct time. 'What is the correct time?' / 'The time is ...'.	QTR?

73, 88 and other number codes

73 comes from 19th-century telegraph shorthand; Western Union’s 92 Code of 1859 made it a greeting.7 8 Say “seventy-three”, not “73s”.9

Term	Meaning	Example
73	Best regards. A friendly sign-off between operators; say 'seventy three', never '73s' or 'best 73'.	73 and good DX.
88	Love and kisses. Used between spouses or close friends; same usage rules as 73.	73 and 88 to the XYL.
92 Code	Western Union's numbered telegraph shorthand; origin of 73 and 88 in ham radio.
5 by 5 (five by five)	Slang for 'signal strength 5, readability 5' = perfect reception.1	Read you five by five.

NATO phonetic alphabet

The international radiotelephony spelling alphabet of ICAO, the ITU and NATO, with the way to say each word. The official spellings are Alfa and Juliett.2 3 5

AAlfaAL FAH
BBravoBRAH VOH
CCharlieCHAR LEE or SHAR LEE
DDeltaDELL TAH
EEchoECK OH
FFoxtrotFOKS TROT
GGolfGOLF
HHotelHOH TELL
IIndiaIN DEE AH
JJuliettJEW LEE ETT
KKiloKEY LOH
LLimaLEE MAH
MMikeMIKE
NNovemberNO VEM BER
OOscarOSS CAH
PPapaPAH PAH
QQuebecKEH BECK
RRomeoROW ME OH
SSierraSEE AIR RAH
TTangoTANG GO
UUniformYOU NEE FORM or OO NEE FORM
VVictorVIK TAH
WWhiskeyWISS KEY
XX-rayECKS RAY
YYankeeYANG KEY
ZZuluZOO LOO

Numbers on the radio

Numbers are said digit by digit, with a few changed sounds so they survive noise: TREE, FOW-er, FIFE, NIN-er. Channel 16 is “WUN SIX”.2

0ZeroZE-RO
1OneWUN
2TwoTOO
3TreeTREE
4FowerFOW-er
5FifeFIFE
6SixSIX
7SevenSEV-en
8EightAIT
9NinerNIN-er

Decimal point in a number is spoken DAY-SEE-MAL. Frequency 118.725: WUN WUN AIT DAY-SEE-MAL SEV-en TOO FIFE.
Whole hundreds are said as the digit plus HUN-dred (aviation: altitude, cloud height, visibility, RVR). Altitude 800 = AIT HUN-dred.
Whole thousands are said as the digit plus TOU-SAND (aviation use). 12 000 = WUN TOO TOU-SAND.

Radio etiquette in eight rules

Think before you press.Know what you will say, and to whom.21
Press, then pause a beat.Talking at once clips the first word; makers say to wait from half a second to three seconds.22
Listen first.Only one person can talk at a time; do not talk over someone, except in an emergency you announce first.20
Say who you are and who you call.Pick one order for the team, such as “Anthony for Muriel”, and keep to it.17
Keep it short.One idea per press; split a long message into several.19
Use plain, standard words.“Affirmative” and “negative” survive noise better than “yup” and “nope”; spell hard names with the alphabet.22
Assume everyone can hear you.A radio channel is not private: keep confidential details off it unless the system is encrypted.20
Check the radio, then let go.Do a radio check at the start of the shift and release the key as soon as you finish.19

Questions

What does 10-4 mean?

OK, message received. It is one of the few 10-codes that mean the same in almost every list, with 10-7, 10-8, 10-20, 10-21 and 10-28. Other codes differ by agency.11 13 14

What does Roger mean on a radio?

“I have received your last transmission.” It confirms that you heard, not that you agree. Aviation rules say never to answer a yes-or-no question with ROGER.1 2

Is “over and out” correct?

Not in radio procedure. OVER means “your turn, reply”; OUT means “we are done, no reply”. Procedure ends a transmission with one or the other.1 Some radio makers still teach “over and out” as the way to sign off.17

What does “copy” mean on a walkie-talkie?

“I received and understood you”, the everyday form of ROGER. It is not in the official procedure lists, but radio makers teach it and crews use it everywhere.16

What is the difference between Roger and Wilco?

ROGER: I received your message. WILCO: I received it, understood it and will do it. WILCO already includes ROGER, so “Roger, wilco” says the same thing twice.1

What does “what’s your 20” mean?

“Where are you?” It comes from the 10-code 10-20, location.13 17

What does 73 mean?

Best regards: radio amateurs say it at the end of a contact. It comes from telegraph shorthand of the 1850s.7 8

Should my team use 10-codes?

For a small team, plain words are clearer: 10-codes mean different things in different places, and US federal guidance recommends plain language whenever more than one agency is on the channel.10 11

Radio codes and walkie-talkie lingo

One radio call, two ways

Everyday walkie-talkie lingo