Edit Article

  • 15 Editors

  • Edited

Secret Codes have been used for thousands of years when someone wanted to make knowledge known to only those who held the key.



  1. Write in Your Diary in Secret Code Step 1.jpg
    Make your code easy to remember, but hard to decode. One of the most common coding methods is to give each letter of the alphabet a number, A=1, B=2. The problem is, it is the most common coding method. Reversing this method and starting with Z=1, Y=2, X=3 may be a better solution, but it is still a very flimsy method of coding. Similarly, writing the words from right to left is also a flimsy method because it only takes a few seconds to figure out that it is written backwards.
  2. Write in Your Diary in Secret Code Step 2.jpg
    Give each letter (or certain words) its own corresponding shape. For example, if you wanted to mention shoe, you would instead draw a small square, a textbook could be a square. A table could be a square with three straight lines draw above it. This will make an almost unbreakable code, but it also makes writing, and reading, a very lengthy process. By using this method, you can essentially create your own language of squares, chevrons, lines, circles with boxes inside, etc. and only someone with the decoder sheet would be able to tell what you had written.
  3. Write in Your Diary in Secret Code Step 3.jpg
    Give each letter its own corresponding letter; A=Q, B=T, C=R. The problem with this system is that it can easily confuse the writer. Trying to write a T while thinking of a B is contrary to the way our brains are designed to perform.

Add your own method


  • Don't make it too intricate, or you'll spend much more time trying to figure out your code, and less time writing your thoughts and feelings.
  • If you happen to be writing about a person you may have a crush on, using a heart (or any symbol thought of in relation to romance) to describe them could lead to the breaking of your code by prying eyes. Draw a small hammer, or a snowflake to describe them and it will be much harder to piece together what was written.
  • While you make up the code, make a corresponding decoding sheet and store it somewhere other than where you store the diary, leaving the two together is much like leaving a key in a lock.
  • The mindset you need when making a code is the basic assumption that if the person who wants to decode it can ever uncover a single word, they can uncover the rest of them. The best code is also one that takes a long time to design. Do not assume you can sit down and design a foolproof code in 30 seconds as some of the more advanced codes in history have taken unbelievable amounts of time to create; it's the creation of an entirely new language, that takes time and effort!
  • To make a really hard code to decode make it into numbers,letters,symbols,and shapes! For Example, A=* H=8 Z=F
  • Try putting every second word or letter the one you want to write and then put other words or letters in between, ( hi my name is .....) hi Kate my sisters name annoying is extremely .... or hti emsy andaemse sids s.d.g.h.j the good thing about the first one is that it looks like it was written by some one with bad grammar but the second one is very hard to read and write.


  • The only way to keep someone from being able to read something you don't want them reading is not to write it in the first place. even the toughest codes can be breached by a person with enough determination and some time.

Related wikiHows

Article Info

Categories: Diary and Secrets

Recent edits by: Zack, Krystle, Maluniu


Thanks to all authors for creating a page that has been read 21,188 times.

Did this article help you?


an Author!

Write an Article