Hams talk funny! They have slang terms that they throw around and they also use code terminology to keep things clear. Below are a few things you might hear while operating an amateur radio station.
Ham slang:
59 "You have a great signal." (The first number is readability and the second is signal strength. A readable signal that is weak, might be reported as 53 for example.)
73 "Best regards" (It is basically like saying "Have a nice day.")
Clear on your final This means that you are done transmitting after the other person finishes their transmission.
CQ "Calling any station" (Originally used in Morse code, but now is used in voice also.)
DX Long distant station, usually outside of the continental U.S.
HT Handy-talky (A handheld radio transceiver.)
Roger "I understand"
Rubber duck A small flexible antenna on a handheld radio
Amateur radio Q code:
QSL Acknowledge that the message is received.
QTH Location.
QSY Change frequency.
QRM Interference, usually from another station operating on a nearby frequency.
QRN Static.
QRZ Who is calling?
QSO Communication or conversation
QSB Fading (a weakening of the signal that makes it difficult of impossible to understand the other operator)
QRT Stopping transmission.
Radio Phonetic Code
Radio phonetic code is used to represent letters of the alphabet when transmitting. Some letters have several different phonetics that are commonly used. Some of those are shown in parentheses.
A ALPHA (America)
B BRAVO
C CHARLIE
D DELTA
E ECHO
F FOXTROT (Fox)
G GOLF
H HOTEL (Honolulu)
I INDIA (Italy)
J JULIET
K KILO (Kilowatt)
L LIMA
M MIKE (Mary Mexico)
N NOVEMBER (Norway Nancy)
O OSCAR (Ocean)
P PAPA
Q QUEBEC (Queen)
R ROMEO (Radio)
S SIERRA (Sugar)
T TANGO
U UNIFORM (United)
V VICTOR (Victoria)
W WHISKEY (William)
X X-RAY
Y YANKEE
Z ZULU (Zed Zanzibar)
More to be added soon...
For a very extensive list of amateur radio terminology, click HERE.