The code
Ten digits. Ten sounds. Learned once.
Each digit below keeps one family of consonant sounds — vowels are never assigned, so you're free to drop them in wherever they make a real word. Most of the pairings have a reason baked in, so you're not memorizing ten arbitrary facts.
0
S · Z
"zero" starts with a z sound
1
T · D
one downstroke, like a t
2
N
n has two legs
3
M
m has three legs
4
R
"four" ends in r
5
L
L is Roman for fifty
6
J · SH · CH
6 is a J turned around
7
K · G
two 7s back to back make a K
8
F · V
a cursive f loops twice, like 8
9
P · B
9 is a P held up to a mirror
Continuing your date
17, 89 — the same date, unpacked.
In the lesson, 1789 flowed as one sentence. Split into its two pairs, it's just T·K and F·B — the same code from the table above, used exactly as before.
T
K
→
TAKE
F
B
→
FABULOUS
TAKE down the FABULOUS Bastille — same 1789, just split into its two pairs.
Any number, not just this one
Two digits walk on stage.
The code doesn't care whether you've met the date before. 34 becomes m + r. M-R is asking to be a word — and MOWER is sitting right there. Any pair works this way: 17 could just as easily be TACK instead of TAKE, 89 could be FOB instead of FABULOUS. Use whichever real word actually sticks.
3
4
→
M
R
→
MOWER
Vowels are free — fill them in however gets you to a real word.
Try it yourself
Three quick checks.
3
Which sound does 3 keep?
Tap the pair that belongs to it.