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Memorizing Daily Lists With the Pegword Method: Part 3, Number Shape System

Have you ever seen the movie Iron-Man 2? There's a scene where Tony is sitting on a huge Randy’s Donut. Using the Number Shape system, this scene became my way to recall the number 0. I’m going to share with you how Daffy Duck, the Fat Tony from The Simpsons, Superman and some other fictional characters are associated with my system for memorizing digits from 0 to 9. 

In my Series on the Pegword Method, I’ve already shared over the last two weeks with you the rhyming system and the meaning system. Number Shape is the third system of this Pegword Method; as you’ll see, it was originally the most natural approach to using this method for memorizing digits. 

In this article, I’m going to explain the origins of the Number Shape system and walk you through my creative process using it for setting the peg associations to the first ten digits. 

The Number Shape System of the Pegword Method

The Loci Method uses spatial locations of well-known places to store vivid images. When Henry Herdson got rid of those spatial locations, leaving only the objects, it evolved into the Pegword Method. The way he explained its application to number associations was using the Number Shape system as follows: 

1 — candle
2 — swan
3 — mustache

Implementing the Pegword Method: Number Shape System (Project Four)

In the next few lines, I want to share with you my creative process for building my number list using the Number Shape system.

At first, I associated each digit with the first image that came to my mind based on their resemblance. There were some numbers that took more time to develop associations for such as five, seven, and nine. Eventually, the first draft turned out as follows:

0 - Donut
1 - Candle or Pole
2 - Swan or Duck
3 - Mustache
4 - Sailboat
5 - Fat mobster smoking a huge Cuban cigar.
6 - Fishing hook
7 - Sickle
8 - pair of eyeglasses
9 -  Shrimp

After this, I associated each image with something more specific — keep in mind that specificity is key when using these mnemonic techniques. At first, I started by using the very first image that came to mind, as those tend to be the strongest and most internalized associations. For the numbers that were harder to visualize I took extra time during a second pass to find better, more vivid associations.

0 - Donut: The huge Randy’s donut where Ironman was lounging when met with Nick Fury to receive the cure for illness. 
 
1 - Candle: Candlelight concerts

2 - Swan or a duck: Daffy Duck. He was one of my favorite cartoon characters when I was a kid. 

3 - Mustache: The Rappi logo. This is a delivery startup in South America created in Colombia and its logo is a mustache. 

4 - Sailboat: Apostle Peter fishing from a sailboat. 

5 - Fat mobster smoking a huge Cuban cigar:  - Fat Tony Smoking — the character from The Simpsons.

6 - A hook: Captain Hook from Peter Pan - Initially this was a fishing hook, but it wasn’t a strong association. 

7 - A Scythe: The Grim Reaper from The Grim Adventures of Billy & Mandy with his scythe. 

8 - A pair of eyeglasses: Superman’s eyeglasses which have the power to hide his true identity. 

9 -  A ladle: My wooden ladle. At first, this was a shrimp, but when I tried to find a strong image for it, I couldn’t. I asked the AI “copilot ” to help me with other stuff that resembled the number nine and one of its suggestions was a ladle. 

Finally, I recalled all the digits and made necessary changes to the images to make them more accurate. 

Final Thoughts

Among the three Pegword systems, this one has been the easiest and most natural for my learning process. 

Let me know in the comments which of the three systems is your favorite approach to the pegword method, and which association really stuck out to you.

In the next article, I will share the Alphabet System, which is an enhanced version of the number pegs explained previously in this Pegword Method series. 

References

Copilot AI. (2026). Content suggestions for the ladle association. [AI‑generated assistance]. 
Higbee, K. L. (2001). Your memory: How it works and how to improve it. Marlowe & Co. 
Metivier, A. The pegword method: The ultimate guide to memorizing lists. Magnetic Memory Method. https://www.magneticmemorymethod.com/pegword-method/






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