Using dictation

Applies To
Word for Microsoft 365 Word for Microsoft 365 for Mac

For information about using dictation in Word, see Dictate your documents in Word.

Tip

To toggle the mic on Windows, use Alt + ` (backquote). On MacOS, use Option + F1.

What can I say?

English

Try saying "new line", "delete", "bold that", and "start list". Other supported punctuation, commands, and symbols are below.

Punctuation

Phrase(s) Output
period, full stop .
comma ,
question mark ?
exclamation mark/point !
new line new line
apostrophe-s 's
colon :
semicolon ;
open quotes close quotes " "
hyphen -
ellipsis, dot dot dot ...
begin/open single quote end/close single quote ' '
left/open parentheses right/close parentheses ( )
left/open bracket right/close bracket [ ]
left/open brace right/close brace { }

Editing

undo
delete*
delete that*
delete last [1-100] words/sentences
delete [word or phrase]*
insert space
backspace
backspace [1-100]

*Tips

  • Saying “delete” by itself removes the last word or punctuation before the cursor.
  • Saying “delete that” removes the last spoken utterance.
  • An example of using [phrase] would be dictating “what a super nice day” and then saying “delete super.” You would then be left with the phrase "what a nice day."

Formatting

bold
italics
underline
strikethrough
<format*> [word or phrase]
superscript
subscript
indent
decrease indent
clear all formatting
align [left, center, right]

*Tips

  • You can bold, italicize, underline, or strikethrough a word or phrase. An example would be dictating “review by tomorrow at 5PM”, then saying “bold tomorrow” which would leave you with "review by tomorrow at 5PM."
  • Try phrases like “bold last word” or “underline last sentence.”

Creating lists

start list
start numbered list
next line
exit list

Adding comments

add comment [your message here]*

*Tips

  • Saying “add comment look at this tomorrow” will insert a new comment with the text “Look at this tomorrow” inside it.
  • Saying “add comment” by itself will create a blank comment box that can be manually typed into.

While dictating

show help
pause dictation
exit dictation*

*Tips

  • To resume dictation, please use the keyboard shortcut (ALT + `) or press the Mic icon in the floating dictation menu.

Symbols

Phrase(s) Output
asterisk *
backslash \
forward slash /
vertical bar sign, pipe character |
backquote, backtick `
underscore _
m-dash
n-dash
paragraph sign/mark
section sign §
ampersand, and sign &
at sign @
copyright sign ©
registered sign ®
degree symbol °
caret symbol ^

Mathematics

Phrase(s) Output
percent sign %
number/pound sign #
plus sign +
minus sign -
multiplication sign x
plus or minus sign ±
division sign ÷
equal sign =
less than sign, left angle bracket greater than sign, right angle bracket < >

Currency

Phrase(s) Output
dollar sign $
pound sterling sign £
euro sign
yen sign ¥

Emoji/faces

Phrase(s) Output
smiley face :)
frowny face :(
winky face ;)
heart emoji <3

Chinese

Punctuation

Phrase(s) Output
句 号
逗 号 ,
换 行换行符分段符 换 行
问 号
感叹号
冒号
左引号右引号 “ ”
左括号右括号 ( )
分号
短划线 -
左单引号右单引号 ‘ ’
左中括号右中括号 [ ]
顿号
撇号 '
省略号 ...

Symbols

Phrase(s) Output
艾特符号at符号 @
星号 *
下划线 _
与号 &
正斜杠斜杠 /
度标记 °

Mathematics

Phrase(s) Output
百分号 %
井号 #
加号 +
减号 -
乘号 ×
除号 ÷
等号 =
加减号 ±
小于号大于号 < >

Currency

Phrase(s) Output
美元符号 $
英镑符号 £
欧元符号
日元符号 ¥
人民币符号 ¥

Spanish

Punctuation

Phrase(s) Output
punto .
coma ,
signo de apertura de interrogación ¿
signo de interrogación ?
signo de apertura de exclamación ¡
signo de exclamación !
salto de línea nueva línea nuevo párrafo nueva línea
dos puntos :
punto y coma ;
comillas izquierdas comillas derechas « »
paréntesis de apertura, abrir paréntesis paréntesis de cierre, cerrar paréntesis ( )
comilla simple de apertura, abrir comilla simple '
corchete de apertura, abrir corchete corchete de cierre, cerrar corchete [ ]
guion corto -
apóstrofo
puntos suspensivos ...
cerrar comilla simple comilla simple de cierre ' '

Symbols

Phrase(s) Output
arroba @
asterisco *
comilla inversa `
guion bajo _
y comercial &
barra diagonal /
símbolo de grado °

Mathematics

Phrase(s) Output
signo de porcentaje %
hashtag #
signo más +
signo menos -
signo de multiplicación ×
signo de división ÷
signo igual =
signo más o menos ±
signo menor que signo mayor que < >

Currency

Phrase(s) Output
símbolo del dólar $
símbolo de la libra esterlina £
símbolo del euro
símbolo del yen ¥

Emoji/faces

Phrase(s) Output
cara sonriente :-)
emoji de corazón <3
cara enfadada :-(
cara con guiño ;-)

French

Punctuation

Phrase(s) Output
point .
virgule ,
point d'interrogation ?
point d'exclamation !
saut de ligne saut de ligne
nouveau paragraphe nouveau paragraphe
deux points :
point-virgule ;
guillemet gauche, guillemet ouvrant guillemet droit, guillemet fermant « »
parenthèse gauche, parenthèse ouvrante parenthèse fermante ( )
tiret demi-cadratin -
guillemet simple ouvrant '
crochet droit ouvrant crochet droit fermant [ ]
apostrophe
guillemet simple fermant '
points de suspension ...

Symbols

Phrase(s) Output
arobase @
astérisque *
trait de soulignement _
barre oblique /
symbole degré °

Mathematics

Phrase(s) Output
signe dièse #
signe plus +
tiret -
signe multiplication ×
signe division ÷
signe égal =
signe pourcentage %
signe inférieur à signe supérieur à < >

Currency

Phrase(s) Output
signe dollar $
signe livre sterling £
signe euro
signe yen ¥

Emoji/faces

Phrase(s) Output
émoticône :-)
emoji cœur <3

German

Punctuation

Punctuation

Phrase(s) Output
punkt satzende .
komma ,
fragezeichen ?
ausrufezeichen rufzeichen !
neue zeile zeilenumbruch neue zeile
doppelpunkt kolon :
strichpunkt semikolon ;
öffnendes anführungszeichen, beginn zitat schließendes anführungszeichen, ende zitat « »

Italian

Punctuation

Phrase(s) Output
punto .
virgola ,
punto interrogativo punto di domanda ?
punto esclamativo !
a capo nuova riga nuova riga
due punti :
punto e virgola ;
virgolette aperte virgolette chiuse « »
parentesi aperta parentesi chiusa ( )
segno di percentuale segno di percentuale
parentesi quadra aperta parentesi quadra chiusa [ ]
aperta virgoletta singola chiudi virgoletta singola ' '
puntini di sospensione ...
trattino -

Symbols

Phrase(s) Output
a commerciale @
asterisco *
underscore _
e commerciale &
simbolo di grado °

Mathematics

Phrase(s) Output
cancelletto hashtag #
segno di divisione ÷
segno di moltiplicazione ×
segno di uguale =
segno di minore segno di maggiore < >

Currency

Phrase(s) Output
simbolo di dollaro $
simbolo di sterlina £
simbolo di euro
simbolo di yen ¥

Portuguese

Punctuation

Phrase(s) Output
ponto final .
vírgula ,
ponto de interrogação ?
ponto de exclamação !
nova linha mudar de linha nova linha
dois pontos :
ponto e vírgula ;
abrir aspas fechar aspas “ ”
hífen -
parêntese esquerdo, parêntese de abertura parêntese direito ( )
aspas simples inicial, aspas simples de abertura aspas simples de fechamento, aspas simples de final ' '
colchete esquerdo, colchete de abertura colchete direito, colchete de fechamento [ ]
apóstrofo
reticências ...

Symbols

Phrase(s) Output
arroba @
asterisco *
sublinhado _
aspa invertida `
e comercial &
sinal e &
sinal de grau °

Mathematics

Phrase(s) Output
tecla jogo da velha #
sinal de adição +
sinal de subtração -
sinal de divisão ÷
sinal de multiplicação ×
sinal de igual =
sinal de porcentagem %
sinal de mais ou menos ±
sinal de menor que sinal de maior que < >

Currency

Phrase(s) Output
cifrão $
símbolo da libra esterlina £
símbolo do Euro
símbolo do Iene ¥

Emoji/faces

Phrase(s) Output
smiley :-)
emoji de coração <3

Japanese

Punctuation

Phrase(s) Output
読 点
句 点
く て ん
ク エ ス チ ョ ン マ ー ク , 疑 問 符
改 行か い ぎ ょ う か い ぎ ょ う
び っ く り マ ー ク , 感 嘆 符 !
ハイフン -
二重かぎかっこ開く , 左二重かぎかっこ右二重かぎかっこ , 二重かぎかっこ閉じる 『 』
左かっこ , かっこ開く右かっこ , かっこ閉じる ( )
セミコロン
新しい段落 新しい段落
左かぎかっこ , かぎかっこ開く右かぎかっこ , かぎかっこ閉じる 「 」
左大かっこ , 角かっこ開く右大かっこ , 大かっこ閉じる [ ]
三点リーダー ...

Symbols

Phrase(s) Output
アット記号アットマーク @
アスタリスク *
度記号 °
アンパサンドアンド記号 &

Mathematics

Phrase(s) Output
番号記号 #
プラス記号 +
マイナス記号 -
等号 =
パーセント記号 %
プラスマイナス ±
小なり記号大なり記号 < >

Currency

Phrase(s) Output
ドル記号 $
ポンド記号 £
ユーロ記号
円記号 ¥

Norwegian

Punctuation

Phrase(s) Output
punktum .
komma ,
spørsmålstegn ?
utropstegn !
ny linje ny linje
kolon :
bindestrek -
venstre anførselstegn, begynnende anførselstegn høyre anførselstegn, avsluttende anførselstegn “ “
venstre parentes høyre parentes ( )
semikolon ;
tankestrek
kort tankestrek
nytt avsnitt nytt avsnitt
apostrof-ess 's
begynnende enkelt anførselstegn, venstre enkelt anførselstegn høyre enkelt anførselstegn, avsluttende enkelt anførselstegn ' '
venstre hakeparentes høyre hakeparentes [ ]
apostrof

Symbols

Phrase(s) Output
krøllalfategn alfakrøll omtale @
og-tegn &
skråstrek /
gradetegn °

Mathematics

Phrase(s) Output
prosenttegn %
nummertegn emneknagg #
minustegn -
plusstegn +
multiplikasjonstegn ×
divisjonstegn ÷
pluss- eller minustegn ±
likhetstegn =
mindre enn-tegn større enn-tegn < >

Currency

Phrase(s) Output
dollartegn $
britisk pund-tegn £
eurotegn
yen-tegn ¥

Emoji/faces

Phrase(s) Output
rynkefjes :-(
blinkefjes ;-)
smilefjes :-)
hjerte-emoji <3

Swedish

Punctuation

Phrase(s) Output
punkt .
kommatecken ,
frågetecken ?
utropstecken !
påbörja ny rad ny rad ny rad
bindestreck -
vänsterparentes, inledande parentes högerparentes, avslutande parentes ( )
semikolon ;
tankstreck
kort tankstreck
inledande citattecken avslutande citattecken “ ”
enkelt citattecken, inledande enkelt citattecken avslutande enkelt citattecken ’ ’
vänster hakparentes, inledande hakparentes höger hakparentes, avslutande hakparentes [ ]
apostrof '

Symbols

Phrase(s) Output
at-omnämnande @
asterisk *
framåtlutat snedstreck, snedstreck, slash /
understreck _
grav accent `
et-tecken, och-tecken &
gradtecken °

Mathematics

Phrase(s) Output
procenttecken %
nummertecken #
plustecken +
minustecken -
multiplikationstecken ×
plus-minustecken ±
divisionstecken ÷
mindre än-tecken, större än-tecken < >

Currency

Phrase(s) Output
dollartecken $
pundtecken £
eurotecken
yentecken ¥

Emoji/faces

Phrase(s) Output
procenttecken %
nummertecken #
plustecken +
minustecken -
multiplikationstecken ×
plus-minustecken ±
divisionstecken ÷
mindre än-tecken, större än-tecken < >

Danish

Punctuation

Phrase(s) Output
punktum .
komma ,
spørgsmålstegn ?
udråbstegn !
linjeskift linjeskift
kolon :
semikolon ;
venstre parentes, åben parentes højre parentes, lukket parentes ( )
startende anførselstegn, begyndende anførselstegn afsluttende anførselstegn, lukkende anførselstegn “ ”
nyt afsnit nyt afsnit
apostrof s 's
startende enkelt anførselstegn, åbnende enkelt anførselstegn afsluttende enkelt anførselstegn, lukkende enkelt anførselstegn ' '
venstre kantet parentes, åben kantet parentes højre kantet parentes, lukket kantet parentes [ ]
apostrof
ellipse ...

Symbols

Phrase(s) Output
snabel-a @
stjerne *
skråstreg /
og-tegn &
grad-tegn °

Mathematics

Phrase(s) Output
plustegn +
plus- eller minustegn ±
divisionstegn ÷
lighedstegn =
pund-tegn, nummertegn, hash-tegn #
procenttegn %
mindre end, større end < >

Currency

Phrase(s) Output
dollartegn $
pund sterling-tegn £
euro-tegn
yen-tegn ¥

Emoji/faces

Phrase(s) Output
smilende ansigt :-)
hjerte <3
trist smiley :-(
blinkende smiley ;-)

Dutch

Punctuation

Phrase(s) Output
punt .
komma ,
vraagteken ?
uitroepteken !
nieuwe regel regeleinde nieuwe regel
puntkomma ;
dubbele punt :
afbreekstreepje -
en-streepje
linkerhaakje haakje sluiten ( )
aanhalingsteken openen, beginaanhalingsteken aanhalingsteken sluiten, eindaanhalingsteken “ ”
nieuwe alinea nieuwe alinea
apostrof s 's
enkel beginaanhalingsteken, enkel aanhalingsteken openen enkel aanhalingsteken sluiten, enkel eindaanhalingsteken ' '
vierkante linkerhaak, vierkante haak openen vierkante rechterhaak, vierkante haak sluiten [ ]
apostrof
beletselteken ...

Symbols

Phrase(s) Output
ampersand, en-teken &
slash /
onderstrepingsteken, laag streepje _
gradenteken °

Mathematics

Phrase(s) Output
plusteken +
minteken -
vermenigvuldigingsteken ×
plusminusteken ±
deelteken ÷
gelijkteken =
kleiner dan-teken groter dan-teken < >
procentteken %
nummerteken, hashtag #

Currency

Phrase(s) Output
euroteken
yenteken ¥
dollarteken $
britse pond-teken £

Emoji/faces

Phrase(s) Output
hart-emoji <3

Finnish

Punctuation

Phrase(s) Output
piste .
pilkku ,
kysymysmerkki ?
huutomerkki !
uusi rivi rivinvaihto uusi rivi
kaksoispiste :
yhdysmerkki -
vasen sulkumerkki oikea kaarisulje ( )
puolipiste ;
viiva
uusi kappale uusi kappale
vasen puolilainausmerkki oikea puolilainausmerkki ' '
vasen hakasulje oikea hakasulje [ ]
heittomerkki
ellipsi ...

Symbols

Phrase(s) Output
ät-merkki, ät-maininta @
tähtimerkki *
gravis `
et-merkki, ja-merkki &
vinoviiva /
alaviiva _
astemerkki °

Mathematics

Phrase(s) Output
ristikkomerkki #
prosenttimerkki %
plusmerkki +
miinusmerkki -
yhtäläisyysmerkki =
kertomerkki ×
plus- tai miinusmerkki ±
pienempi kuin -merkki suurempi kuin -merkki < >
jakomerkki ÷

Currency

Phrase(s) Output
dollarin merkki $
punnan merkki £
euron merkki
jenin merkki ¥

Emoji/faces

Phrase(s) Output
surullinen hymiö :-(
silmää iskevä hymiö ;-)
hymiö :-)
sydänhymiö <3

Hindi

Punctuation

Phrase(s) Output
पूर्ण विराम
पूर्ण विराम चिन्ह
प्रश्नवाचक चिन्ह , प्रश्न चिन्ह , प्रश्नवाचक ?
विस्मयादिबोधक चिन्ह , विस्मयादिबोधक , विस्मयादिवाचक चिन्ह , विस्मयादिवाचक , आश्चर्य चिन्ह !
अल्प विराम , अल्प विराम चिन्ह ,
उप विराम , उप विराम चिन्ह :
निर्देशक चिन्ह
अवतरण चिन्ह शुरू , अवतरण शुरू , उदधरण चिन्ह शुरू , उदधरण शुरू अवतरण चिन्ह खत्म , अवतरण खत्म , उदधरण चिन्ह खत्म , उदधरण खत्म “ ”
अर्ध विराम , अर्ध विराम चिन्ह ;
ओम चिन्ह
नई पंक्ति नई पंक्ति
कोष्ठक चिन्ह शुरू , कोष्ठक शुरू कोष्ठक चिन्ह खत्म , कोष्ठक खत्म ( )
दीर्घ विराम चिन्ह ।।

Symbols

Phrase(s) Output
योजक चिन्ह -
विवरण चिन्ह :-
आदेश चिन्ह :-

Korean

Punctuation

Phrase(s) Output
마침표 .
쉼표 ,
물음표 ?
느낌표 !
쌍점 , 콜론 :
소괄호 열고 , 괄호 열고 소괄호 닫고 , 괄호 닫고 ( )
중괄호 열고 중괄호 닫고 { }
대괄호 열고 대괄호 닫고 [ ]
홑낫표 열고 홑낫표 닫고 「 」
겹낫표 열고 겹낫표 닫고 『 』
홑화살괄호 열고 홑화살괄호 닫고 〈 〉
겹화살괄호 열고 겹화살괄호 닫고 《 》
쌍반점 , 반쌍점 ;
새로운 줄 , 줄 바꿈 , 줄바꿈 새로운 줄
새로운 단락 새로운 단락
큰따옴표 열고 큰따옴표 닫고 " "
작은따옴표 열고 작은따옴표 닫고 ' '
가운뎃점
줄임표 , 생략표 ...

Symbols

Phrase(s) Output
물결표 ~
빗금 , 슬래시 /
줄표
붙임표 -
하이픈 -

Dictation suggestions

Markings may appear under words with alternates that we may have misheard.

If the marked word is already correct, you can select Ignore.

Dictation settings

Click on the gear icon to see the following settings:

  • Spoken Language: View and change languages in the drop-down.
  • Auto Punctuation: Toggle the check-mark on or off, if it is available for the language chosen.

Spoken languages supported

By default, Dictation is set to your document language in Office.

We are actively working to improve these languages and add more locales and languages.

Supported Languages

Chinese (China)

English (Canada)

English (United Kingdom)

English (United States)

French (France)

German (Germany)

Italian (Italy)

Spanish (Mexico)

Spanish (Spain)

Preview languages *

Danish

Dutch (Netherlands)

English (Australia)

English (India)

Finnish

French (Canada)

Hindi

Japanese

Korean

Norwegian (Bokmål)

Polish

Portuguese (Brazil)

Portuguese (Portugal)

Russian

Swedish (Sweden)

Thai

* Preview Languages may have lower accuracy or limited punctuation support.

Privacy

This service does not store your audio data or transcribed text.

Your speech utterances will be sent to Microsoft and used only to provide you with text results.

For more information about experiences that analyze your content, see Connected Experiences in Office.

Troubleshooting

Can't find the dictate button

If you can't see the button to start dictation:

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  • On Windows: make sure you have Windows 10 or above.

Dictate button is grayed out

If you see the dictate button is grayed out:

  • Make sure the document is not in a read-only state.

Microphone doesn't have access

If you see "Please check your audio settings" or "We don’t have access to your microphone" after clicking the dictation button, you can try one of the following: 

  • Make sure no other application or web page is using the microphone and try again.

Microphone isn't working

If you see "There is a problem with your microphone" or "We can’t detect your microphone":

  • Make sure the microphone is plugged in.
  • Test the microphone to make sure it's working.
  • On Windows 10: check the microphone settings in Control Panel.
  • On Windows 10: also see How to set up and test microphones in Windows 10.
  • On a Surface running Windows 10: Adjust microphone settings.
  • On Mac: check the microphone in System Preferences > Sound > Input.

Dictation can't hear you

If you see "Dictation can't hear you" or if nothing appears on the screen as you dictate:

  • Make sure your microphone is not muted.
  • Adjust the input level of your microphone.
  • Move to a quieter location.
  • If using a built-in mic, consider trying again with a headset or external mic.

Accuracy issues or missed words

If you see a lot of incorrect words being output or missed words:

  • Make sure you're on a fast and reliable internet connection.
  • Avoid or eliminate background noise that may interfere with your voice.
  • Try speaking more deliberately.
  • Check to see if the microphone you are using needs to be upgraded.