Symbols: Say the name of the symbol or character, like “ampersand,” “asterisk,” “at sign,” “caret,” and “percent sign.”.Punctuation: Say the name of the punctuation mark, such as “comma,” “period,” “question mark,” “open parenthesis,” and “close parenthesis.”.To include punctuation marks, symbols, and special characters, use the following: All caps off: Return to the default letter case.All caps on: Format the following sentence in all uppercase letters.All caps: Format the following word in all uppercase letters.Caps off: Return to the default letter case.Caps on: Format the following in title case.Tab key: Move the cursor to the next tab.Here are some common commands you’ll need: Common dictation commandsĪs you speak your text, you’ll likely need to perform actions like starting a new paragraph and inserting punctuation marks. Step 4: To stop using dictation, click Done below the microphone icon, enter the keyboard shortcut, or press your Return key. Step 3: To change the language while you’re dictating, click the current language below the microphone icon and select a new one. Step 2: Press the key combination or choose Edit > Start Dictation from the menu bar, and you’ll see a small microphone icon appear on the screen.īegin speaking, and you’ll see your text appear in the app and the icon fluctuate for volume as you speak. Step 1: Place your cursor in the app where you want to speak the text. Once you have dictation enabled, you can simply use the keyboard shortcut to begin using it. Should you choose to turn off keyboard dictation later, return to the Keyboard settings in System Preferences and select Off on the Dictation tab. When you finish, close the System Preferences window, and you’re set. Step 7: To use a specific microphone for the input, click the Drop-Down Arrow below the Microphone icon on the left. You can also set your own keyboard shortcut by selecting Customize and entering the combination you want to use. Step 6: To use a different keyboard shortcut to turn on dictation, click the Shortcut drop-down box and choose the one you want. Step 5: To use a different language, click the language drop-down box and either pick a language from the list or select Customize to add one. If you want to continue, click Enable Dictation.
If you press the keyboard shortcut and Siri shows up instead of registering in the entry box, make sure the Accessibility window is active by clicking anywhere on the window.Step 4: You’ll see a pop-up message letting you know that what you dictate will be sent to Apple to convert it to text. Press the keyboard shortcut you use for Siri.
The entry box will show “Press keys now” in light gray. Perform: From the pop-up menu, select Press Keyboard Shortcut.This will allow you to create a custom command. Below that is a box for “Enable advanced commands.” Check it. An overlay window appears with a Selection list in the left column.Check the box for “Enable the dictation keyword phrase” and you’ll see that the word Computer appears in the long box.In the left column of the Accessibility system preference, scroll down until you find Dictation and select it.(You can also selct View in the menu bar and select Accessibility.)
#HOW TO ACTIVATE DICTATION ON MAC OFFLINE#
You may have to perform a download that allows for offline use. Look for the setting called Dictation.If nothing happens, click on another tab, then click Dictation again. In System Preferences ( Apple menu > System Preferences), click on the Keyboard icon.Now that you have your keyboard shortcut in place, here are the steps to perform to make “Hey Siri” work on your Mac. Create a custom shortcut by selecting Customize and then pressing the keys you want to use.Ĭreate a Dictation Command to activate Siri
Apple also offers Press Function Space as an option, but you can’t use it, either. There are two Hold keyboard combinations that you don’t want to use. Look for Keyboard Shortcut in the main window.Open the Siri system preference ( Apple menu > System Preferences).To change your Siri keyboard command, follow these steps. You need to change this because the Accessibility feature doesn’t have a way to hold down a keyboard combination. The default Siri keyboard command in Sierra is to hold down the Command and Space buttons. On iOS, you can activate Siri by saying “Hey Siri.” Vocal activation isn’t available on macOS Sierra through the Siri system preferences, but as Jdcampbell on Reddit points out, it can be done through Sierra’s Accessibility system preference.Įssentially, you use dictation to activate the keyboard shortcut for Siri.