ok so i just got my technician license a few months ago and ive been listening on HF a bit with my uncle who has a general and i keep hearing people say stuff like QSL and QTH and QRM and honestly i have no idea what half of them mean in context. like i know QSL is supposed to be about confirming a contact but then someone will just say 'QSL' and im not sure if they mean yes or i understand or what exactly. and then theres all the abbreviations that arent Q codes too like 73 and 88 and OM and YL and my uncle just rattles them off like its nothing. is there like a good way to learn these or do you just pick them up over time. i dont want to sound dumb on air but i also feel like if i just listen ill eventually figure it out

honestly you just pick most of em up over time, thats how it worked for me anyway. but yeah QSL in conversation basically just means 'understood' or 'got it', same as a roger. QTH is your location, QRM is interference from other stations, QRN is natural noise like static, QSY means change frequency, QRZ is who's calling me basically. the numbered ones like 73 are just old telegraph shorthand that stuck around -- 73 means best regards, 88 is love and kisses which you'll hear guys send to their wife on air sometimes. OM is old man which sounds rude but its just what you call a fellow ham, YL is young lady. none of it is actually complicated once you hear it enough in context

there's a full Q code list on the ARRL website and also just searching 'ham radio Q codes list' will pull up a bunch of reference pages. i printed one out when i was studying and kept it next to the radio for like the first year lol. QRP is one people use a lot too -- technically it means reduce power but colloquially it just means low power operating in general. you'll also see people write it in text like on forums. dont stress about knowing all of them right away, some of the more obscure ones ive been licensed for 6 years and still have to look up