SOS

See also: Appendix:Variations of "sos"

Text style	Emoji style
🆘︎	🆘️
Text style is forced with ⟨︎⟩ and emoji style with ⟨️⟩.
🆘 U+1F198, 🆘 SQUARED SOS ← 🆗 [U+1F197] Enclosed Alphanumeric Supplement 🆙 → [U+1F199]

Translingual

Pronunciation

• English: (US) IPA^(key): [ɛs.oʊˈʔɛs]

Etymology 1

Chosen because its Morse code sequence (...---...) was easy to remember and recognize even through interference. Many mnemonics and backronyms were later formed from the sequence.

Symbol

SOS

1. emergency, mayday, distress

Usage notes

The code SOS is normally only used in text transmission; for voice communication, mayday is used. The sequence is normally transmitted run together without any letter spacing in between, so it is technically a single unique code rather than a series of three letters.

Synonyms

• CQD
• mayday

See also

• pan-pan

Etymology 2

Symbol

SOS

1. (international standards) ISO 4217 currency code for the Somali shilling.

English

Pronunciation

• (UK) IPA^(key): /ˌɛs.əʊˈɛs/

• Audio (Southern England):

  (file)

• (US) IPA^(key): /ˌɛs.oʊˈɛs/

Etymology 1

From interpretation of the signal (· · · — — — · · ·), chosen merely as a sequence that is easy to recall and transmit, as normal Morse letters.

It is not, as is commonly believed, an abbreviation for "save our souls", "save our ship", or any other phrase.

Noun

SOS (plural SOS's or SOSes)

1. The conventional Morse code call made by a ship in distress.

   The crew sent a frantic SOS as they realised the scale of the disaster.

   • 1925 July – 1926 May, A[rthur] Conan Doyle, “(please specify the chapter number)”, in The Land of Mist (eBook no. 0601351h.html), Australia: Project Gutenberg Australia, published April 2019:

     "Look at wireless. Look at the S. O. S. call at sea. Is that not a benefit to mankind?"

   • 2016 August 11, “Chinese fishing boat collides with Greek freighter near Senkakus, 6 rescued”, in The Mainichi‎^[1], archived from the original on 12 August 2016‎^[2]:

     At around 5:30 a.m., crewmembers of a JCG patrol boat received an SOS from the 106,726-ton freighter Anangel Courage. The patrol vessel and a JCG plane found the freighter on the high seas about 67 kilometers away from Uotsuri Island, one of the Senkaku Islands, which are also claimed by China.

See also

• mayday
• pan-pan

Etymology 2

Noun

SOS

1. Initialism of Secretary of State.
2. Initialism of special order sale.

Phrase

SOS

1. (colloquial) Initialism of slip on show: a warning to a woman that the underwear she has on can be seen.

Etymology 3

Noun

SOS (uncountable)

1. (games) A children's game in which players take turns to place S's and O's on a grid, collecting points by creating an "SOS" sequence.

See also

• tic tac toe

Etymology 4

Noun

SOS (uncountable)

1. Initialism of shit on a shingle.

Etymology 5

Phrase

SOS

1. (Commonwealth, military, historical) Initialism of struck off strength or stricken off strength.

   Antonym: TOS

Usage notes

• Only used with the past participle, chiefly in historical military records.

Anagrams

• 'oss, OSS, OSs, SSO, oss

Japanese

Etymology

Borrowed from English SOS.

Pronunciation

• (Tokyo) エスオーエス [èsúóꜜòèsù] (Nakadaka – [3])
• (Tokyo) エスオーエス [èsúóóéꜜsù] (Nakadaka – [5])
• IPA^(key): [e̞sɨo̞ːe̞sɨ]

Noun

S(エス)O(オー)S(エス) • (esuōesu) 

1. SOS (conventional Morse code call made by a ship in distress)
2. (by extension) the state of being sought an emergency rescue

   火(か)星(せい)からのS(エス)O(オー)S(エス)

   Kasei kara no esuōesu

   an SOS from Mars

3. silicon on sapphire

Swedish

Etymology 1

Internationalism since 1906. Ultimately, from the 1905 German distress signal ...---. (“SOE”). But, as the . (“E”) was concidered too short, it was changed into the more rythimic and easily remembered signal ...---... (“SOS”). First attested in 1914.

Alternative forms

• S.O.S.

Noun

SOS ?

1. SOS, international distress signal
   • 1914 May 30, “Quebec den 29”, in Kalmar, page 3:

     I detta telegram meddelas att ångaren 30 mil öster om Father Point varit i kollision med ett annat fartyg och därefter börjat sjunka. På signalen SOS som utsändes af »Empress of Ireland» ingick svar från regeringsångaren.

     This telegram reports that a steamer, 30 miles east of Father Point, collided with another vessel and subsequently began to sink. The SOS signal sent by the "Empress of Ireland" was answered by a government vessel.

   • 1923 April 16, “Nödsignalen stoppade rundradion”, in Svenska Dagbladet, page 9:

     Nyligen uppfattade amerikanska kuststationer vid Newyork^[sic] svaga SOS-signaler från ett fartyg, som befann sig i nöd på Atlanten.

     American coastal stations near New York recently picked up faint SOS signals from a vessel in distress on the Atlantic.

   • 2017 August 10, Amanda Liikamaa, “Vandrare skrev SOS i snön”, in SVT Nyheter:

     Det var efter lunch på torsdagen som polisen fick in ett samtal om två personer som verkade vara i behov av hjälp. Personerna i fråga försökte att få uppmärksamhet bland annat genom att skriva SOS i snön.

     On Thursday afternoon, police received a call about two people who appeared to need help. The individuals had tried to attract attention, including by writing SOS in the snow.

   • 2026 March 15, “Skidåkare räddade från havet – skrev SOS med is”, in Aftonbladet:

     Vid 10.30 kom dock en ny position från sändaren – och tack vare att åkarna format ett stort ”SOS” med isblock hittades de och plockades upp från isflaket av en finsk helikopter.

     At 10:30 am, however, a new position was received from the transmitter – and thanks to the skiers forming a large “SOS” with ice blocks, they were located and rescued from the ice floe by a Finnish helicopter.

Derived terms

• SOS-nummer (“emergency number”)
• SOS-signal (“SOS signal”)

Proper noun

SOS n (genitive SOSs)

1. abbreviation of SOS Alarm; the Swedish emergency call operator, which takes emergency calls from the public and dispatches the appropriate emergency services

   Ring SOS! ― Call the emergency services!

   • 2026 March 12, SVT Nyheter‎^[3]:

     Ringde SOS flera gånger om dagen – ny metod stoppar onödiga 112-samtal

     Called emergency services multiple times a day – new method stops unnecessary 112 calls

Etymology 2

Butter, cheese, and herring

Initialism of smör, ost, sill (“butter, cheese, herring”). Probably humorous in origin, most likely from the distress signal of the same name.

Alternative forms

• S.O.S.

Noun

SOS ?

1. A traditional appetizer consisting of butter, cheese, and herring; a smaller version of the brännvinsbord.

Derived terms

• SOS-tallrik (“butter, cheese and herring plate”)

Etymology 3

abbreviation of Sveriges officiella statistik (“Sweden's official statistic”)

Noun

SOS ?

1. a particular collection of systems and processes that produce official statistics about Sweden

Etymology 4

abbreviation of Södersjukhuset

Noun

SOS ?

1. misspelling of SÖS, largest hospital in Stockholm, Sweden

Anagrams

• oss