How to Translate & Understand the Minecraft Enchanting Table Words

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Learn what the strange words around the enchanting table mean

Co-authored by Zac Churchill and Hannah Dillon

Last Updated: July 9, 2025 Fact Checked

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• Enchanting Table Language
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• How to Translate
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• Full List of Words
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• Video
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• Tips

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If you've ever used the enchanting table in Minecraft, you've likely seen some weird, runic words floating around the table and in the table's interface. While these words look like scribbles and gibberish, they can actually be translated into English! That's because these words are written in a special font that functions as a cipher. In this article, we'll teach you how to translate the Minecraft enchanting table language into English and the full list of words the enchanting table uses.

Translating the Minecraft Enchanting Table

The words in and around the Minecraft enchanting table are written in the Standard Galactic Alphabet, which can be converted to English if you know the cipher. The words don't influence what type of enchantments you get. 61 possible words that can be chosen (54 if you're not playing Java Edition).

Steps

Section 1 of 3:

Minecraft Enchanting Table Language

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1. 
   1
   The enchanting table language is written in the Standard Galactic Alphabet. The Standard Galactic Alphabet is a font invented for the Commander Keen series of video games. Minecraft uses this font for the runes seen floating around the enchanting table, as well as the words in the enchanting table's interface.

   • The Standard Galactic Alphabet isn't a language in and of itself, but is rather an alphabet cipher. That means one "letter" of the Standard Galactic Alphabet correlates to a letter in the Latin alphabet. The words in and around the enchanting table aren't translated to a different language entirely, but written in English and then put through the cipher.
2. 
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   The enchanting table chooses random words from a predefined list to display. Three to five words are chosen and appended together to create the words in the interface. These words are just for decoration and don't actually mean anything about the type of enchantment you're going to get.
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Section 2 of 3:

Translating the Enchanting Table Language

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1. 
   1
   Use the cipher to translate the words. Use the following cipher to translate the words in and around the enchanting table into English. If you'd rather just see what each word in the enchanting table means, jump to our section with all the enchanting table words below.
   
   

   Minecraft Enchanting Table Cipher     ᔑ ʖ ᓵ ↸ a b c d ᒷ ⎓ ⊣ ⍑ e f g h ╎ ⋮ ꖌ ꖎ i j k l ᒲ リ 𝙹 !¡ m n o p ᑑ ∷ ᓭ ℸ ̣ q r s t ⚍ ⍊ ∴ ̇/ u v w x || ⨅ y z
2. 
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   Use an online translator. If you want to write your own words and sentences in the Minecraft enchanting table language, you can use an online translator to do so! Try the English to Standard Galactic Alphabet translator on LingoJam. Simply type the word(s) you want to convert to the Minecraft enchanting table language on the left, then copy the translated word(s) on the right.

   • LingoJam also has an English to Minecraft Enchanting Table Language translator, but this translator doesn't work as well as the Standard Galactic Alphabet translator. Since the enchanting table's words are written in the Standard Galactic Alphabet, the Standard Galactic Alphabet translator will work the same.
3. 
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   Install a mod that translates the words. Since the enchanting table language is easily translated into English, there are mods that will translate the words for you. This doesn't change the gameplay at all since the words in the enchanting table don't correlate to the enchantments, but it's an easy way to see what the words mean in the enchanting table interface.

   • Try this mod by o-Peepo on modrinth to translate the enchanting table words.
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Section 3 of 3:

Full List of Enchanting Table Words

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1. English Enchanting Table air ᔑ╎∷ animal ᔑリ╎ᒲᔑꖎ baguette (JE only) ʖᔑ⊣⚍ᒷℸ ̣ ℸ ̣ ᒷ ball ʖᔑꖎꖎ beast ʖᒷᔑᓭℸ ̣ berata ʖᒷ∷ᔑℸ ̣ ᔑ bless ʖꖎᒷᓭᓭ cold ᓵ𝙹ꖎ↸ creature ᓵ∷ᒷᔑℸ ̣ ⚍∷ᒷ cthulhu (JE only) ᓵℸ ̣ ⍑⚍ꖎ⍑⚍ cube ᓵ⚍ʖᒷ curse ᓵ⚍∷ᓭᒷ darkness ↸ᔑ∷ꖌリᒷᓭᓭ demon ↸ᒷᒲ𝙹リ destroy ↸ᒷᓭℸ ̣ 𝙹∷|| dry ↸∷|| earth ᒷᔑ∷ℸ ̣ ⍑ elder ᒷꖎ↸ᒷ∷ elemental ᒷꖎᒷᒲᒷリℸ ̣ ᔑꖎ embiggen ᒷᒲʖ╎⊣⊣ᒷリ enchant ᒷリᓵ⍑ᔑリℸ ̣ fhtagn (JE only) ⎓⍑ℸ ̣ ᔑ⊣リ fiddle ⎓╎↸↸ꖎᒷ fire ⎓╎∷ᒷ free ⎓∷ᒷᒷ fresh ⎓∷ᒷᓭ⍑ galvanize ⊣ᔑꖎ⍊ᔑリ╎⨅ᒷ grow ⊣∷𝙹∴ hot ⍑𝙹ℸ ̣ humanoid ⍑⚍ᒲᔑリ𝙹╎↸ ignite ╎⊣リ╎ℸ ̣ ᒷ imbue ╎ᒲʖ⚍ᒷ inside ╎リᓭ╎↸ᒷ klaatu ꖌꖎᔑᔑℸ ̣ ⚍ light ꖎ╎⊣⍑ℸ ̣ limited ꖎ╎ᒲ╎ℸ ̣ ᒷ↸ mental ᒲᒷリℸ ̣ ᔑꖎ mglwnafh (JE only) ᒲ⊣ꖎ∴リᔑ⎓⍑ niktu リ╎ꖌℸ ̣ ⚍ of 𝙹⎓ other 𝙹ℸ ̣ ⍑ᒷ∷ phnglui (JE only) !¡⍑リ⊣ꖎ⚍╎ physical !¡⍑||ᓭ╎ᓵᔑꖎ range ∷ᔑリ⊣ᒷ rlyeh (JE only) ∷ꖎ||ᒷ⍑ scrolls ᓭᓵ∷𝙹ꖎꖎᓭ self ᓭᒷꖎ⎓ shorten ᓭ⍑𝙹∷ℸ ̣ ᒷリ shrink ᓭ⍑∷╎リꖌ snuff ᓭリ⚍⎓⎓ sphere ᓭ!¡⍑ᒷ∷ᒷ spirit ᓭ!¡╎∷╎ℸ ̣ stale ᓭℸ ̣ ᔑꖎᒷ stretch ᓭℸ ̣ ∷ᒷℸ ̣ ᓵ⍑ the ℸ ̣ ⍑ᒷ towards ℸ ̣ 𝙹∴ᔑ∷↸ᓭ twist ℸ ̣ ∴╎ᓭℸ ̣ undead ⚍リ↸ᒷᔑ↸ water ∴ᔑℸ ̣ ᒷ∷ wet ∴ᒷℸ ̣ wgahnagl (JE only) ∴⊣ᔑ⍑リᔑ⊣ꖎ xyzzy ̇/||⨅⨅||

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Tips

• The nonsensical enchanting table words present only in the Java Edition (phnglui, mglwnafh, cthulhu, rlyeh, wgahnagl, and fhtagn) are a reference to the prayer from H.P. Lovecraft's story "The Call of Cthulhu." The full quote is "Ph'nglui mglw'nafh Cthulhu R'lyeh wgah'nagl fhtagn", which translates to "In his house at R'lyeh, dead Cthulhu waits dreaming."
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