Tips on how to add accent marks on Mac: Easy suggestions and tips

When typing away, I usually want so as to add an accent or different diacritical marks. Whether or not that is due to my urge to kind fiancé and café accurately or when writing phrases and names in a distinct language, I’ve needed to discover ways to add accent marks on Mac.

In case you are in the identical state of affairs or just need to enhance your writing expertise in numerous languages, it isn’t as arduous as it might appear. On this information, I will take you thru alternative ways you may add particular characters to make your writing look polished and genuine. You will now not have to Google and duplicate a phrase to kind it accurately. 

Methods to kind letters with accents

Earlier than we get into the main points, let’s rapidly go over the only methods to kind accented letters:

Tips on how to do letter accents on Mac

While you understand you want an accented letter when writing an e mail or essential doc, do you threat wanting sloppy or unprofessional simply because your keyboard would not present these letters? 

That is not proper, as some phrases have utterly completely different meanings while you add an accent. For instance, “resume” merely means persevering with an exercise, however “résumé” clearly means an expert CV.

Thankfully, Apple has thought this via, they usually present alternative ways you may kind letters with accents. 

Kind accented letters utilizing the accent menu

Probably the most generally accented letters are the vowels — a, e, i, o, and u. Together with c and n, Apple makes it straightforward to entry their accented variations via the accent menu.

This can be a easy menu that comes up while you press and maintain a letter on a keyboard. For instance, while you press and maintain the letter “a,” you will get eight completely different accented variations.

You need to use the cursor to pick out the variation you need. You may as well press the corresponding quantity on the keyboard or use the arrow keys and the Enter button.

Nevertheless, it is essential to notice that this menu is restricted. It solely works with a number of letters and would not work on some apps. When you usually write phrases or names in a distinct language, you want a extra complete various.

Use Rocket Typist to retailer incessantly used accented phrases 

You may make issues simpler through the use of Rocket Typist. This can be a textual content expander that makes typing straightforward as you may retailer accented letters, phrases, and templates you usually use. You’ll be able to then assign them a shortcut, and while you kind it on chosen apps, it’ll fill out what you need to kind.

This is how one can get began with Rocket Typist:

1. Set up and open Rocket Typist.

2. Click on on the app from the highest bar > Select Snippet Editor.

3. Click on the add “+” button on the bottom-left nook to create a brand new snippet. You will see two most important sections:

4. Enter the accented characters you incessantly use and assign a singular abbreviation. (e.g., typing e’ to provide é or djv to provide déjà vu). 

Now, while you need to fill within the phrase, phrase, or accented character, you simply have to kind within the abbreviation.

Certainly one of my favourite options in regards to the app is that it has an iOS model and syncs with iCloud, so I can at all times entry my snippets when utilizing a distinct system.

Use Keyboard shortcuts so as to add accents

Urgent and holding a letter to get its accented alternate options is not actually the quickest methodology of typing characters. While you need to write a whole sentence (or e mail) in Norwegian or use Spanish upside-down query marks, you will get drained alongside the best way.

The sooner various is mastering keyboard shortcuts. This can want you to commit fairly a quantity to reminiscence, however all the things can be price it, and remembering will change into simpler the extra you utilize them. You will by no means should decelerate to determine how one can add an é or ü once more.

The principle trick to this methodology is knowing what are generally known as the “useless keys” on Mac. These are combos of two keys that, as an alternative of typing a letter, insert a logo. While you kind a letter after that, it’ll be formatted utilizing the image to make it an accented letter.

Sounds sophisticated? It is truly not.

An instance is while you maintain the Possibility key and press the letter N. This can insert a tilde (~). Now, while you press the letter N after that, the tilde will change to Ñ. The identical occurs while you press Possibility + E, then E.

There are various keyboard shortcuts you may grasp, relying on the accents you utilize usually. This is a number of the most typical:

You needn’t memorize all these. Simply begin with those you utilize usually. Even when it’s important to pause to recollect them at first, you will discover your fingers instinctively flying over the keys in a short while. 

By the best way, if you wish to change into a grasp of shortcuts, take a look at how one can kind Math symbols.

Use the Character Viewer for extra accents

Generally, the accents or symbols you want might not be lined by shortcuts as they don’t seem to be used usually. That is the case in case you are working with extra sophisticated languages like Vietnamese, so you will want a extra complete solution to entry all present characters. 

That methodology is the Character Viewer, which is sort of a treasure chest for particular characters and accents. It is accessible on the menu bar, however when you do not see it, go to the Apple menu > System Settings > Keyboard (within the sidebar). Now, go to Textual content Enter, click on Edit, then activate Present Enter menu in menu bar.

After that, you need to use it so as to add accents on Mac:

1. Click on on the enter menu within the menu bar (it might seem as a flag or character icon).
2. Choose Present Emoji & Symbols, and the character viewer will open.

3. Browse or seek for the character you might be searching for, then double-click on it.

4. This can robotically insert it the place your cursor is.

If the character you might be searching for is not a part of the usual keyboard, you will discover it right here. The Latin part is the go-to part for many accented characters.

Change your keyboard enter supply

An alternative choice to keyboard shortcuts is displaying the keyboard in your display screen. While you press the choice key, the characters will change, so you will not want to recollect the precise keys to press or the various shortcuts. 

Apart from merely including an accented letter, this feature is essentially the most appropriate when you usually kind in new languages. Since it is a digital keyboard, Mac means that you can change it to completely different languages. You’ll be able to add a French, Spanish, or German one (any language) to your traditional ABC keyboard.

To do that, go to Apple menu > System Settings > Keyboard > Enter Sources > Edit. Click on the add “+” button on the decrease left aspect, then select the language you need to add. It is best to now discover the brand new keyboard(s) within the enter menu.

You’ll be able to change between them utilizing your mouse or by clicking the fn key.

Wrap-up: Tips on how to do accents on Mac

Studying how one can put an accent over a letter on Mac might sound trivial, however it may possibly make an enormous distinction in your writing because it makes you look skilled. Brazilians will prefer it while you write São Paulo accurately, and other people like Renée and Zoë can even respect the hassle. Remembering the various shortcuts is usually a bit tougher, however Rocket Typist can assist you insert the letters, names, and phrases you utilize usually rapidly. 

You may as well use different strategies just like the accent menu, keyboard viewer, and enter languages. All these work with Ulysses, so you need to use it to focus in your concepts when writing. Rocket Typist can save your favourite accented letters or phrases so you may pull them up simply the subsequent time you write. The 2 apps are a part of Setapp’s 250+ app library, which you’ll attempt at no cost for 7 days. Setapp is my go-to platform because it has tons of helpful macOS and iOS apps, all underneath one subscription. I really like not having to pay for every app individually — what a steal!