How to Do Accents on Mac

Joel Mason

Mac, Tutorials

Do you need to type accents on your Mac but don’t know how? Don’t worry, we’ve got you covered!

In this tutorial, we’ll walk you through the steps to easily add accents to letters and characters on your Mac. Let’s get started!

Using Keyboard Shortcuts

If you frequently need to type accented characters, using keyboard shortcuts is a real time-saver. Here’s how:

  • Accent a letter: To add an accent mark to a specific letter, simply hold down the Option key on your keyboard and press the letter key that corresponds to the accent you want. For example, to type “é”, press Option + e, then release the keys and type “e”.
  • Cedilla accent: To add a cedilla accent (ç), hold down the Option key and press c.
  • Trema/diaeresis accent: To add a trema or diaeresis accent (ü), hold down the Option key and press u.
  • Note: Some letters may not have corresponding accents using this method.

The Character Viewer

If you can’t remember all the keyboard shortcuts or need access to less common accents, macOS offers a Character Viewer tool that provides easy access to a wide range of characters and symbols.

To access the Character Viewer:

  1. In the menu bar,
    • Select “Edit”.
    • Choose “Emoji & Symbols”.
  2. Alternatively, you can simply press Control + Command + Space on your keyboard.

Once the Character Viewer is open, you can browse through various categories or search for a specific character using the search bar. To insert a character into your document, simply double-click on it.

Using Text Substitutions

If you frequently use certain accents or symbols, you can set up text substitutions to automatically replace specific combinations of characters with their accented equivalents.

To set up text substitutions:

  1. In the menu bar,
    • Select “System Preferences”.
    • Choose “Keyboard”.
    • Select the “Text” tab.
  2. In the Text tab,
    • Click on the “+” button.
    • Type in the shortcut combination you want to use (e.g., “e'”).
    • In the “With” field, enter the accented character or symbol (e., “é”).
    • You can add as many text substitutions as you need. They will be available across all applications on your Mac.

Congratulations! You now know how to add accents and special characters on your Mac.

Whether you prefer using keyboard shortcuts, the Character Viewer, or setting up text substitutions, typing accents has never been easier. Happy typing!

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