User interface

Conversion candidate window

The Pinyin conversion candidate window.

The conversion candidate window offers candidates whose readings (Pinyin) match what you type.

General operations

Press this key

To do this

Down arrow

Move to the next candidate in the candidate window.

Up arrow

Move to the previous candidate in the candidate window.

Left arrow

Move the insertion point to the left in the input area.

Right arrow

Move the insertion point to the right in the input area.

Space

Select the currently-focused candidate.

Tab

Expand and show text suggestions from Bing.

Number key

Select the corresponding candidate.

Enter

Close the candidate window without selecting any candidate. The entered text will remain in the input area.

Esc (Escape)

Close the candidate window without selecting any candidate. The entered text will be deleted from the input area.

Other features

  • Double Pinyin can assign longer vowel groups to consonant keys as shortcuts and zh, ch, sh to vowel keys as shortcuts. In this way, when the input method expects a vowel, you can use these shortcuts to speed up typing. Find Double Pinyin settings in IME settings > General.

  • Fuzzy Pinyin helps you input Chinese characters more accurately by allowing for slight variations in Pinyin input. It accounts for common mistakes or uncertainties in typing Pinyin and suggests the correct characters based on context. Find Fuzzy Pinyin settings in IME settings > General.

  • People name input can be triggered by ; (semicolon) + to help you find characters used for people's names more easily. When in Double Pinyin mode, press Shift + ; (semicolon), then the key. Find this feature in IME settings > Advanced.Activating Pinyin people name input.

  • U-mode input can be used to input Chinese characters based on their stroke or component, or to input a symbol. When in Double Pinyin Mode, U-mode can be triggered by pressing Shift + U. Find this feature in IME settings > Advanced.Activating Pinyin U-mode input.

  • V-mode input can be used to input Chinese format numbers, dates, times, formulas, and more. It also supports inputting Unicode and GB-18030 code points. When in Double Pinyin mode, V-mode can be triggered by pressing Shift + V. Find this feature in IME settings > Advanced.Activating Pinyin V-mode input.Activating Pinyin V-mode input.

IME toolbar

The Pinyin IME toolbar.

IME supports a UI called the IME toolbar which offers an alternate way to quickly invoke specific IME functions. The IME toolbar is the UI renewed from the language bar.

To open the IME toolbar, long-press (or right-click) the IME mode icon in the notification area, and then select Show/hide IME toolbar.

Keyboard shortcuts

IME offers keys or combinations of keys to use IME functions.

Press this key

To do this

Shift

Switch between English and Chinese mode.

Shift + Space

Switch character width between full-width and half-width.

Ctrl + . (period)

Switch between Chinese punctuation and English punctuation.

Note: This is only effective in Chinese mode. You can manage your shortcut keys in IME settings > Keys.

IME settings

Find IME settings in Windows 11

  1. Select Start , then select Settings > Time & language  > Language & region.

  2. Select one of the following:

    • Chinese (Simplified, China)

    • Chinese (Simplified, Singapore)

    Note: If you don’t see this option, select Add a language, search for Chinese, then select the pack you want to install.

  3. Select Language options.

  4. In the Keyboards section, find Microsoft Pinyin.

    Note: If you don’t see this option, you can select Add a keyboard and select Microsoft Pinyin to add it to the Keyboards section.

  5. Select Keyboard options.

    Note: You can also search IME settings in the Search bar on the taskbar.

Find IME settings in Windows 10

  1. Select Start , then select Settings  > Time & language > Language .

  2. Select one of the following:

    • Chinese (Simplified, China)

    • Chinese (Simplified, Singapore)

  3. Select Options.

  4. Scroll down, select Microsoft Pinyin and then select Options.

    Note: You can also search IME settings in the Search bar on the taskbar or select Settings in the context menu (right-click menu) of the IME mode icon in the notification area.

Text suggestions from Bing

You can type even faster with text suggestions from Bing. IME gets the most relevant word from Bing and displays it with the cloud icon in the IME candidate window.

A suggestion from Bing in the IME candidate window.

The integrated search suggestions gives you additional suggestions that are similar to what you see on the Bing search page. You can either insert a suggestion as text or search it directly in Bing.

Searching for suggestions from within Bing.

To turn on these features, select the chevron button at the right end of the IME candidate window and follow the instructions.

Where to start trying text suggestions from Bing in the IME candidate window.

Turning on Bing suggestions.

Alternately, you can find the setting in Settings > Time & language > Language & region > Microsoft Pinyin > Lexicon and self-learning > Try text suggestions from Bing.

How can I give feedback?

If you encounter any problems or have suggestions regarding Microsoft IME, please give us feedback through the Feedback Hub. You can open the Feedback Hub from Send feedback in the context menu (right-click) of the IME mode icon in the notification area or click here. Your feedback goes directly to our engineers working to improve IME. For more on steps for providing feedback, please refer to Send feedback with the feedback hub app.

Compatibility

Microsoft Pinyin IME was renewed as of Windows 10 October 2020 Update (Version 2004)  and is also available with Windows 11. IME supports a compatibility setting in IME settings > General. If you encounter issues with the new IME, you can enable the previous version of IME by turning on Use previous version of Microsoft Pinyin. We'll continue to improve the new IME, so please consider filing feedback to help us deliver great features.

User interface

Conversion candidate window

The Yubi conversion candidate window.

The conversion candidate window offers candidates whose keystrokes (Wubi) match what you type.

General operations

Press this key

To do this

Down arrow

Move to the next candidate in the candidate window.

Up arrow

Move to the previous candidate in the candidate window.

Left arrow

Move the insertion point to the left in the input area.

Note: The insertion point only moves to the left within the unconverted input area.

Right arrow

Move the insertion point to the right in the input area.

Space

Select the currently-focused candidate.

Number key

Select the corresponding candidate.

Enter

Close the candidate window without selecting any candidate. The entered text will be deleted from the input area.

Esc (Escape)

Close the candidate window without selecting any candidate. The entered text will be deleted from the input area.

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