Mnemonic Devices: 8 Detailed Case-Studies For Learning Faster

Podcast: Download

Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | RSS

Instantly memorizing what you need to know is the ultimate dream for many people.

I know because I’m a memory expert who receives dozens of emails every week from the people who read this blog.

And I myself once needed a variety of mnemonic devices to help me memorize a variety of things to complete my PhD. Later, mnemonics helped me learn German so I could teach in Germany, which I did for several years.

But for many people who don’t yet understand what mnemonic devices are and how to use them, their inability to remember anything is the ultimate nightmare.

One reason people struggle to master their memory is simple:

There are so memory experts out there who use different terms for the core memory techniques you need to succeed. It can be confusing.

Don’t fret. on this page, I’ll help you understand everything and help you find the memorization approach that will work best for you.

Here’s what this post will cover:

What Is A Mnemonic Device?
Mnemonic Devices Examples
– Personally Created Flashcards
– Acronyms
– The Memory Palace Technique
– Associative Imagery, Linking, and Pegwords
– Story Method
– Major System and Dominic System
– 00-99 PAO
– Mind Maps

So if you’re ready to dive in, let’s get started with…

What Are Mnemonic Devices?

The best mnemonic device definition we can start with is this:

Anything that helps you remember better is a mnemonic.

Even the dictionary says that mnemonic devices are anything: “assisting or intended to assist the memory.”

For that reason, “mnemonics” is a highly adaptable term that works as an umbrella to cover a wide range of tactics and strategies.

They’re scientifically proven too. Researchers have tested Aboriginal memory techniques, and mnemonics are science-backed for use in schools.

Mnemonic Device Types

When it comes to mnemonic devices, here are the major types:

• Personally created flashcards
• Acronyms
• Memory Palaces (sometimes called a Mind Palace, the Method of Loci, Journey Method, or Roman Room)
• Associative imagery, linking, and pegwords
• Story method
• Major System or Dominic System
• 00-99 PAO
• Mind Maps
• … and more

But here’s something to notice that might be helpful.

Flashcards really are “devices.” They are objects that you create and sort through using your hands.

Memory techniques like the Memory Palaces, however, involve the use of mental imagery as a process.

As memory expert David Berglas made clear in A Question of Memory, memory is not a unitary mechanism or a “thing.” It is a behavior.

And that is how you use mnemonic devices. You understand them as processes and then you sprinkle mnemonics into your life strategically so that applying them becomes part of your learning behaviors.

Let me make this point even more concrete:

When I gave a TEDx presentation, I not only memorized my talk — on the day I delivered the speech, I memorized all the names of the people I met. I used a wide variety of techniques (see how to memorize a speech) and chose the specific mnemonic devices I used based on the circumstances.

With practice, using mnemonic devices happens almost on autopilot!

What Mnemonics Can Help You Learn

I just mentioned how I used a variety of techniques to memorize my TEDx Talk.

It’s possible to memorize just about anything you want when you have the core techniques under your belt. Incuding:

• Planets
• Poetry
• Scripture
• Phone numbers
• Names
• Nursing, pharmacology and medical terminology
• Product types (which can help you get a raise or promotion at work)
• Self-help tips that help you develop mental strength
• Dance moves

There’s literally nothing I’ve seen yet that mnemonics can’t help you remember. In fact, when I was invited to moderate at the 2023 Pan-American Memory Competition, the top memory athletes used a combination of the techniques on this page to memorize cloud formations.

In other words, it’s even possible to memorize abstract shapes when you use these techniques.

Mnemonic Devices Examples & How to Use
Mnemonic Devices For A Variety of Learning Goals

Let’s dig a little deeper using our list of mnemonic examples above.

Personally Created Flashcards

My friend and language learning expert Gabriel Wyner inspired me to give these a try after reading his book, Fluent Forever.

Basically, instead of downloading software put together by a stranger, get some paper and colored pens. (Obviously, you also have all the information you want to memorize organized too.)

Next, use the paper and colors to help you create images. These images should remind you of the target information you want to recall.

Now, there’s a whole lot more going on in this example, so please keep it in mind. I’ll go deeper into it later in this post.

For now, if you’re worried about having a bunch of cards flying all over the place, don’t be. You can wrap them up in a Memory Palace drawing just like this:

Next, let’s look at how abbreviations can help.

Acronyms

Have you ever asked… what is it called when you use letters to remember words? As usual, there’s no one answer, but the first method is called an acronym.

For example, when I teach memory improvement in a live setting, I usually talk about how following the rules will set you F.R.E.E.

“Free” is a word that helps me remember the meta-rules students need to make learning with memory techniques easy and fun:

Frequent practice in a state of…
Relaxation and a spirit of…
Experimentation so that you can be…
Entertained

Just follow those rules as you use mnemonic devices and you will truly be free to memorize as much as you want.

The best part?

You can lay out acronyms inside of a Memory Palace.

Other acronyms people use include:

• “My Very Excellent Mother Just Served Us Nachos” (for the planets)
• “Hibiscus vs. PacMan leads to victory for many, many reasons” (for remembering the vaccine schedule)
• “Onward, Onward, Onward Two Travelers And Foxes Very Greedily Verified Ascending Happily” (for memorizing the cranial nerves)

Frankly, I find that many of my students find acronyms to be the least effective mnemonic devices for learning semantic information.

That said, one study has shown compelling evidence that acronyms are good for remembering the sequence of actions in a task (sometimes called procedural memory).

That’s why I sometimes use the FREE acronym model when giving simple presentations. It’s proven to work for this kind of task. I just wouldn’t use acronyms for larger speeches or long term learning goals, like developing fluency in a language.

The point is: Use acronyms with caution, or at least combine them with another mnemonic device, like the one we’re going to cover next.

The Memory Palace Technique

The Memory Palace is an ancient technique. It essentially involves using space as a mnemonic device.

You do this by thinking about a familiar location. Then, you chart out a logical journey that does not take energy from your memory. If you have to memorize the journey, it is not a good Memory Palace, so pick something else.

For example, I visited a bookstore in Zamalek, a part of Cairo, Egypt. To keep it simple, I used only the parts of the bookstore I remembered.

To help my brain reduce the cognitive load even further, I made a quick drawing of the space:

Notice I’ve actually drawn the Memory Palace on an index card (or flashcard). I do this because it makes it easy to store many of them for quick reference if I ever need them.

Next, I write down the number of stations and name them. I find this step helps me “set and forget” the Memory Palace and ensure I’ve gotten it right the first time.

I believe scientists call this kind of activity a means of harnessing the levels of processing effect.

Associative Imagery, Linking, and Pegwords

Inside of these Memory Palaces, place a list of mnemonics you create. These will be a kind of mnemonic that are multi-sensory.

For example, think back to that first image I shared above with the flashcards for Chinese. Those colorful drawings help me remember the sound and the meaning of the Mandarin words.

But those mental images aren’t just on the flashcards! They’re also mentally situated on stations in the Memory Palaces I use.

(Some people call these stations “loci.” It’s basically the same thing, but “Magnetic Station” is my preferred term because recent advancements make them much more powerful than the ancient teachings suggest.)

To make such imagery, you will want to complete a number of exercises.

For example, go through the alphabet and think of an image for each letter. The pegword method is a great way to explore this technique further.

If you’re really serious about mastering the Memory Palace technique, you can explore having an image on each and every station.

For example, when I memorize cards, I always have images on the stations to help me “trigger” the row of cards I’ll be placing and later recalling on a Magnetic Station.

Basically, what I’m talking about is multiple levels of linking all at once. Some people talk about the linking method in a very weak way, that amounts to just “this links to that.” I don’t find that approach is strong enough.

What most of us need is for our association imagery to combine:

• Sound and meaning links at the granular level of the alphabet
• Multi-sensory links that are concrete and specific, not vague and abstract
• Tied tightly to space so that we are working from the foundations of the strongest level of memory: spatial memory

Furthermore, the real trick with these associative images is that they must:

1. Actually associate in a way that triggers what you want to memorize (for example, the barber symbol I used on the card above triggers the ‘ba’ sound).
2. Help you get back the meaning of the content (where relevant).
3. Have a Memory Palace so you can mentally “find” the imagery. Some people don’t need the Memory Palace, but in my experience, they are few and far between.

And when you think about what mnemonic devices mean more holistically, each card is a kind of station in a Memory Palace.

Story Method

Using a story (with or without a Memory Palace) is not much different than using, links pegs or associations. The only difference is that with the story method you’re adding the extra step of creating a narrative.

For example, let’s say you want to memorize a list of names at an event:

Haley
Allan
Sharon
Andrew
Edward
Angela
Sam

If you were using pegs, you would look at “h” when seeing Haley and associate her with something like Halley’s comet or a hat. Allan could be associated with an Allen key.

You can also spontaneously produce associations or have stock characters. For example, every Sharon could be Sharon Osbourne.

The story method, on the other hand, requires us to add a narrative to the association, such as:

Halley’s comet is crashing into an Allan key in the hands of Sharon who finds it burning hot and hands it to Andrew.

The story method can possibly be used without a Memory Palace. However, stories have parts. And those parts exist somewhere in your brain which means they are inherently spatially located.

I think you’ll find it a lot less mentally taxing to lay out any narrative elements you use in a Memory Palace.

Another way to approach the story method is to use a movie or novel plot you know well.

For example, let’s say you have mentally reduced The Matrix series down to three scenes: the hotel, the desert of the real, and Neo’s cabin on Morpheus’ ship.

For the first piece of information you want to remember, you would use the first room and perhaps Trinity doing her flying kick. Then you would move on to the next location for the next piece of information.

This example shows how stories are always spatial in nature from another angle… after all, if they don’t take place somewhere… how can they be stories?

Ultimately, there is no right or wrong to this application. It basically comes down to your level of skill, the context, and the nature of the information.

I personally would not add a story step while memorizing names in a live setting — and tend to create my associations on the fly rather than draw upon stock images. But if a stock image makes sense, I’ll certainly use it.

Major System and Dominic System

When it comes to associative imagery, the alphabet is a great tool. But it can also be mixed with numbers.

The Major System (often called the Major Method) helps you associate a consonant with each digit from 0-9. This mnemonic device has been in use since the Katapayadi of ancient India.

A more common approach that has been in use since the 1700s looks like this:

A more recent innovation is the Dominic System. It has some key differences, so make sure to study both.

00-99 PAO

PAO stands for Person, Action, Object. Basically, you’re taking the Major System and using it to help you make words from numbers.

Here are some examples from mine:

01 – Sad (tragedy mask)
02 – Sun (from the movie Sunshine)
31 – Mad Magazine mascot (often dressed as a maid)

Notice that I’ve put some concrete indicators in parentheses. This is because “sad” is not very evocative. It’s just a concept.

But when I think of a tragedy mask, it still links to the concept of sadness. To make it even more specific, I think of the tragedy mask worn by William Shatner in Oedipus Rex.

Mind Maps

Tony Buzan is one of the greatest innovators of mind mapping, but he says in Mind Map Mastery that he abandoned this technique for improving memory back in the 70s.

He focused more on using keywords that help with creativity, problem-solving, and planning.

I feel that the conclusion to remove their use as a memorization tool was premature. If you would like to learn how to combine mind maps with Memory Palaces, for example, here’s a simple way to also add in the Major System for incredible results:

As you can see, it’s fun to mix keywords with the Major Method on paper in a way that turns the mind map into a simple Memory Palace.

And this is really just the beginning when it comes to learning how to remember things.

It’s not just that there are a TON of mnemonic devices to choose from. It’s that we get to delight in how they can be mixed and matched in so many ways.

I Love Using A Combination Of Mnemonic Strategies — How About You?

We’re incredibly lucky.

Although it can be confusing, the Internet has enabled dozens of memory competitors, memory athletes, and plain ol’ memory fanatics like me to create tons of free content for the world.

Even though it’s easy to get lost in the intricacies, remember: Memory is not a thing. It is a behavior.

Dive into each of the approaches you learned today.

Really dig deep into their nuances through practice.

Let me know if you found this guide helpful and comment below. If there are mnemonic devices I missed, please share it so I can update this post. All of us will be eternally grateful.

And if you want to learn more about how to make the most of your new mnemonic strategies using a Memory Palace, pick up your free copy of the memory improvement kit today!