Mnemonics by element group
A collection of mnemonics for the periodic table, one for each column (group) of the table. The first letter of each word matches the chemical symbol of the elements in that group, in order.
For a mnemonic covering specifically the first 20 elements, see The first 20 elements of the periodic table.
Group 1A (H, Li, Na, K, Rb, Cs, Fr)
- Highly Nasty Kids Rub Cats Fur (this version leaves out Lithium/Li)
- Hans liebt Natuerliche Kaese reibt (ueber) (c)zentralsued Frankreich. (mnemonic in German)
Group 2A (Be, Mg, Ca, Sr, Ba, Ra)
- Bearded Muggers Came Straight Back Rapidly.
- Beer Mugs Can Serve Bar Rats.
Group 3 (B, Al, Ga, In, Tl)
- Big Al Garner's In Trouble.
- Big Al Gave In Tulsa.
- Big Al Gave Incomplete Totals.
- Big Al Gave Innocent Toys.
- Bob Allen Gave Indians Tennis Lessons. (Tennis + Lessons together spell Tl)
- Bears Always Give Indians Trouble.
Group 4A (C, Si, Ge, Sn, Pb)
- Can Silly Germans Snatch Lead? (Lead is Pb's actual element name, spelled out instead of coded)
- Conniving Sisters Get Snotty Playboys.
- Can Si Get Snockered at the Pub?
Group 5 (N, P, As, Sb, Bi)
- New Popes Assign Subordinate Bishops.
- Never Put Arsenic in SilverBullet Beer.
Group 6A (O, S, Se, Te, Po)
- Oil is Slicker with STP (Se, Te, Po).
- Old Soldiers Seem Terribly Polluted.
- Oversized Sailors Sell and Tell about Polo cologne.
- Oh, She Sells The Poles.
Group 7A (F, Cl, Br, I, At)
- Frank Cleverly Brought Indian Attire.
- Fairy Clowns Broil Innocent Ants.
- Fat Clyde Bribed Innocent Arthur.
- "Floor Cleaner Broken?" I Asked.
Group 8A (He, Ne, Ar, Kr, Xe, Rn)
- He Never Arrived; Karen eXited with Ron.
- He Needs OUR Crazy Xerox RepairmaN.
First Row Transition Metals (Sc, Ti, V, Cr, Mn, Fe, Co, Ni, Cu, Zn)
- ST. Vincent Cried, "Mommy!" Feeling Cold Next to Cold Zombies. (ST. combines Sc + Ti)
- Scott Tips Very Counterfeit Money, Feels Cold Near Cubic Zircons.
- Scary Tiny Vicious Creatures Mean Females Come Nightly to Club Z.
- Scotty Vickerman Fee Cony Cousin.
- Scott Tickled Vanna's Cranium, Manager Fred Could Not Cut In.
Second Row Transition Metals (Y, Zr, Nb, Mo, Tc, Ru, Rh, Pd, Ag, Cd)
- Yes, Sir Nob. Most Technicians Rub Rod's Pale Silver Cadillac.
Third Row Transition Metals (La, Hf, Ta, W, Re, Os, Ir, Pt, Au, Hg)
- Larry's Half Taken, Wendy Reached Out Her Plate Audibly, Helga.
Lanthanides (Ce, Pr, Nd, Pm, Sm, Eu, Gd, Tb, Dy, Ho, Er, Tm, Yb, Lu)
- Caesar Procrastinated at the Nile, Permitting So Many Europeans (who were) Getting Turbid (and) Dying (of) Home Urges [Erges] To Yell "Lutetium!" (So + Many together spell Sm)
- Cecil Proudly Named Pam, Sam, (and) Eugene. Good Tobin Dyes Hosiery Early Tomorrow Yellow-bLUe. (Yellow-bLUe combines Yb + Lu)
Actinides (Th, Pa, U, Np, Pu, Am, Cm, Bk, Cf, Es, Fm, Md, No, Lr)
- Three Planets: Uranus, Neptune, (and) Pluto. Amy Cured Berkeley, California. Einstein (and) Fermi Made Noble Laws.