Dollar sign in Morse code
Written “$”, not in the ITU standard
The dollar sign ($) has no official Morse code, but it is commonly sent as ...-..-, said di-di-di-dah-di-di-dah, the letters S and X run together. The international standard defines no currency symbols at all; this signal comes from SX, the old telegraph abbreviation for dollars. For an exact amount, operators send a currency code such as USD.
...-..- (dot dot dot dash dot dot dash)
“di-di-di-dah-di-di-dah”dot dot dot dash dot dot dash
7 elements · 5 dots, 2 dashes · 17 units
Hear it at your speed (WPM)
1133 ms at 18 WPM
The dollar sign at a glance
- Morse code
- ...-..-
- Said as
- di-di-di-dah-di-di-dah
- Elements
- 7
- Length
- 17 units
- At 18 WPM
- 1133 ms
- ITU standard
- No
- Sounds like
- SXLetters run together
No currency signs in the standard
ITU-R M.1677-1 has no $, €, £ or any other currency symbol, and the ITU has never added one. Where an amount must be read without doubt, the ISO 4217 codes such as USD, EUR and GBP are preferred, since every receiver can copy plain letters.
The $ signal is still common in charts and software, and this site's Morse code translator uses it, so typing $5 gives a result rather than a gap.
From SX in the Phillips Code
The Phillips Code, a set of telegraph abbreviations compiled in 1879 by Walter P. Phillips of the Associated Press, wrote dollars as SX. Operators eventually dropped the gap between S, ..., and X, -..-, and the two letters became one unofficial sign.
Hear it
- S...
- X-..-
Seven elements, mostly dots
No other mark on the punctuation chart has seven elements. Five of them are dots, though, so the dollar sign takes 17 units, about 1.13 seconds at 18 WPM, which is quicker than the six-element comma at 19.
The rhythm is three quick dots, a dash, two dots and a closing dash. The first four elements alone are V, ...-, so a dollar sign cut short can be copied as V.
Hear it
- V...-
Sending an amount
$5, the amount in this page's practice box, is ...-..- ....., the sign then the figure with a normal letter gap, 29 units in all. If the receiver may not know the sign, 5 USD or 5 DOLLARS says the same with standard characters only.
Hear it
- $5...-..- .....
Characters to compare
Close to the dollar sign in sound, so the likeliest mix-ups.
Try the dollar sign in a word
Tap the dollar sign yourself
Press for a dot, hold for a dash. Space works too.
- Send
- ...-..-
- Yours
- Nothing yet
Questions about Dollar sign.
Is there a Morse code for the euro or pound sign?
No. Neither the euro nor the pound sign has a signal, official or common. Send the currency code, EUR or GBP, or write the word out.
What is the International Morse code?
It is the version of Morse defined by the ITU in Recommendation ITU-R M.1677-1 and used worldwide on radio. The dollar sign is not part of it, which is why this page calls it unofficial.
Can I put a dollar sign in a Morse code tattoo?
You can, since ...-..- is the usual form, but a reader with an ITU chart will not find it. The Tattoo designer draws text you type as Morse; check the sign against this page before it goes on skin.