1-minute answer
On a Mac, hold Option plus a letter to add the matching accent, or use Control+Command+Space to open the full Character Viewer for anything else.
01 Step by step, per platform
A real, followable procedure for every platform — not a thin restatement of the shortcut.
Dead-key accents
- Press Option+E then the letter for acute (é → é).
- Press Option+` then the letter for grave (è → è).
- Press Option+U then the letter for umlaut (ë → ë).
- Press Option+N then the letter for tilde (ñ → ñ).
- Press Option+I then the letter for circumflex (ê → ê).
Direct combos (no dead key)
- Option+C → ç directly.
- Option+Shift+9/0 → curly quotes, not an accent but the same modifier pattern.
Anything else
- Press Control+Command+Space to open Character Viewer.
- Type the character's name (e.g. "o with stroke").
- Double-click to insert.
02 FAQ
Why does Option+E sometimes do nothing until I press another key?
It's a dead key — Option+E stages the acute accent and waits for the letter it applies to. Press the letter next (or Space to get a bare ´).
Does this work the same on a MacBook without a numpad?
Yes — these are Option-key combos, not Alt-codes, so they work identically on every Mac keyboard.
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