Wingdings Translator
Convert text to Wingdings symbols and decode Wingdings back to text.
Uppercase Letters (A-Z)
Lowercase Letters (a-z)
Numbers (0-9)
Note
This tool uses Unicode emoji approximations of Wingdings symbols. The actual Wingdings font (bundled with Windows) uses different glyphs. If you need exact Wingdings, try typing in a text editor with the Wingdings font selected.
Puzzle Tips
- • Wingdings was popular for "hidden messages" in the 90s
- • Look for sequences of symbols that could be letters
- • Check if the symbols are copy-paste friendly (Unicode) or font-based
- • Famous: "NYC" in Wingdings = skull and crossbones imagery (a coincidence!)
What is Wingdings?
Wingdings is a dingbat font created by Microsoft in 1990. Instead of letters, it displays symbols like hands, faces, arrows, and decorative shapes. It was designed for creating visual elements in documents.
How Wingdings Works
Wingdings is a direct character-to-symbol mapping:
- Type a letter → displays a symbol
- Each keyboard character has a specific symbol
- The actual text underneath is still normal letters
Wingdings Fonts
Microsoft created several Wingdings variants:
- Wingdings: The original (1990)
- Wingdings 2: More symbols
- Wingdings 3: Arrows and shapes
- Webdings: Web-themed symbols
Wingdings in Puzzles
Wingdings appears in puzzles because:
- Easy to use: Just change the font!
- Recognizable: Most people have seen Wingdings
- Visual appeal: Symbols look mysterious
- Computer themes: Tech or 90s nostalgia puzzles
Decoding Wingdings
To decode Wingdings text:
- Select the Wingdings text
- Change the font to a normal font (Arial, etc.)
- The original text is revealed!
Or use this tool with Unicode symbol approximations.
Famous Wingdings "Messages"
In 1992, a rumor spread that typing "NYC" in Wingdings showed anti-Semitic imagery (skull, Star of David, thumbs up). Microsoft stated this was completely coincidental—Wingdings wasn't designed with letter combinations in mind.
Related Encodings
- Symbol Fonts: Webdings, Symbol, Zapf Dingbats.
- Emoji: Modern Unicode symbol encoding.
- Pigpen: Traditional symbol substitution cipher.