21 Clever Mnemonic Devices That Will Help You Remember Almost Everything

Please Excuse My Dear Aunt Sally.

We asked the BuzzFeed Community for some of their funny, dirty, and most creative mnemonic devices. What are mnemonic devices? They’re useful little tricks or methods — like acronyms or poems — that help them remember important information. Here are some of the best:

1. The order of planets from the sun:

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"And yes, I still include Pluto. I learned it that way and I am not changing it 20 years later. Thanks Mr. Eliot! #neverforgetpluto" —leiacardin

Other variations: “In French, we have this mnemonic sentence 'Mon Vieux, Tu M'as Jeter Sur Une Nouvelle Planète,' which translates to 'Old pal, you threw me on another planet.'" —noémieouellette

“Mary’s Violet Eyes Make John Stay Up Nights Pining.” —kademcgillis

And without *Pluto: "My Very Excited Mother Just Served Us Nachos"– maddyyaaasss

2. The order of the cell cycle phases:

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"It's weird but it's how I remember it." —akh12304

3. When to use "gray" or "grey":

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—micahrob2000

*It's also spelled "grey" in Canada.

4. The order of mathematical operations:

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"When learning how to solve equations in sixth-grade math, I used to remember this acronym to remember the orders of operations." —andpeggy51

Other variations: "Pandas Eat Milk Duds And Skittles.” —nadams01

5. When to use "affect" or "effect":

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"I always use RAVEN to remember the when to use affect or effect." —jenniferantics

6. The order of taxonomic rank:

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—texascupcake

Other variations: "Keep Ponds Clean Or Fish Get Sick." —scotts4ce0205ce

"Kings Play Chess On Fine Green Silk.” —keholder792

7. How to remember who is on which bill:

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"I work at a bank. I use this trick to train tellers to remember which portrait is on each dollar bill. Knowing the portraits is a helpful step to catching counterfeits. You would think spotting the wrong portrait would be easy but I have had customers fooled before." —tracynicole

8. How to write "b" and "d":

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“I could never get my b’s and d’s right when I learned how to spell, so my mom taught me ‘b' for 'bright goes to the right' to remember what side to put the bump! And I remembered what ‘right' was because it was the hand I held my pencil with.” —meghanm4fe68bdba

9. How to remember sin, cosine, and tan:

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"My tenth-grade math teacher taught us this and it's stuck with me for over 10 years!" —sassmaster

10. How to spell "necessary":

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"As silly as it sounds, I could never remember how to spell 'necessary.' So I just remember a shirt has one collar and two sleeves. I learned that from my third-grade teacher!" —gabbyc449b6ef26

11. The carpal bones:

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"I’m in sports medicine and remembering all the bones in the body is crucial! One of the many mnemonic devices I’ve learned is the one for the carpal bones in your hand." —sydneyl455da3e29

12. The difference between stalagmites and stalactites (aka mineral formations in caves):

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"I always remember it as stalaGmites are on the Ground, and stalaCtites are on the Ceiling!" —elizabethjanes

Another variation: “My professor told the class a joke to remember the difference. Stalagmite because you ‘MITE’ trip over them and stalactite because you should hold on ‘TITE.’” —panther718

13. Time zones in Canada:

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—alanabaker

14. How to set the table:

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"The fork goes on the left of the plate, and the knife and spoon go on the right of the plate. 'Fork' and 'left' both have four letters and 'knife,' 'spoon,' and 'right' each have five. Also, if you make an ‘okay’ sign with both hands, the left makes a lowercase 'b' (bread goes to the left of the plate) and the right hand makes a 'd' (your drink goes on the right)." —kamahu92

15. The order of the cranial nerves:

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—heatherf4b0b8fcf4

Another variation: "On Our Own, They Traveled And Found Voldemort Guarding Very Ancient Horcruxes." —ljforeman11

16. The order of the first five books of the Old Testament:

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"I went to a Catholic high school and my ninth-grade Old Testament teacher taught us this. It's been stuck in my head for 20 years." —dcpuppygirl2

17. How to spell "desserts":

"When you're S-T-R-E-S-S-E-D you eat D-E-S-S-E-R-T-S. Desserts is stressed backwards." —katelynp43b9d67eb

Another trick: "To remember the difference between dessert and desert, remember that dessert has two s's like Strawberry Shortcake!" —joykipler

18. How many days are in each month:

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—jacqiprochaska

19. The order of the Great Lakes:

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"It's the both the order from West to East and the order from biggest to smallest." —kenta42e4995b4

20. How to do multiplication with decimals:

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“To teach multiplication with decimals, I sing part of ‘Irreplaceable' by Beyoncé. Plus I add in some funky jumping to the left dance moves. I would tell my students that Beyoncé wrote that song specifically for me so I could use it in math class. Some kids actually believed it for a while, lol. When I see a former student they say they still remember that song!” —jennifere457d607ff

21. And finally, the four principal compass directions:

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– kellyz7

Other variations: "NEWS."– rannss

"Never Eat Shredded Wheat."– michelle87

"As an Australian, I learned Never Eat Soggy Weetbix."– antarabasumatary

Note: Submissions have been edited for length and/or clarity.

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CORRECTION

Mar. 15, 2017, at 22:10 PM

Oops! Hamilton and Franklin weren’t presidents. ♫ Never gonna be president now, never gonna be president♫. No. 7 has been updated accordingly.