okay so ive been listening on HF for a few weeks now and i keep hearing all these weird short codes and letter combos and i cant figure out what half of them mean. like QSL, QRM, QSB... i know QSL is like a confirmation card thing? but then on PSK31 i see people typing stuff like 73, 88, OM, YL, and i honestly dont know what half of it means in context. i looked up a list online but it doesnt really explain when you actually use them or why. is there like a good resource or can someone just explain the common ones, at least the ones youll actually hear on the air vs the ones that are kind of obsolete now

yeah the Q codes go way back to telegraph days, most of them anyway, and a lot of them are technically maritime or aviation stuff that hams just kind of adopted over the years. the ones you'll actually hear all the time are QRM which is interference from other stations, QRN is atmospheric noise like static crashes from lightning, QSB is fading where the signal goes up and down, QSY means change frequency, QRZ is asking who's calling, and QTH is your location. QSL is indeed confirmation, either the card or just confirming you copied something.

the number stuff like 73 means best regards and 88 is love and kisses which is typically sent to or from a YL which is young lady, though really it just means any female ham. OM is old man, which again just means any male ham regardless of age, and it's not rude at all, just tradition. DX means distant station or long distance contact. there's probably 20 or 30 more you'll pick up just from operating but those are the ones that come up constantly.

i was in the same boat not too long ago honestly. one thing that helped me was just keeping a little notepad next to the radio and writing them down as I heard them and then looking them up after. after a few weeks it just kind of clicks. also if you get on some of the slower nets where the net control explains things a bit more youll pick it up faster than just listening to DX pileups where everyone's going a mile a minute