Keyboard shortcuts
| Letter | Windows (Alt code) | Mac |
|---|---|---|
| à À | Alt + 0224 / 0192 | Option + `, then A |
| è È | Alt + 0232 / 0200 | Option + `, then E |
| é É | Alt + 0233 / 0201 | Option + E, then E |
| ì Ì | Alt + 0236 / 0204 | Option + `, then I |
| ò Ò | Alt + 0242 / 0210 | Option + `, then O |
| ù Ù | Alt + 0249 / 0217 | Option + `, then U |
Mac: On a Mac, hold Option and press the first key, let go, then type the letter. Option + ` gives the grave accent (à, è, ì, ò, ù) and Option + E the acute accent (é). For a capital letter, press Shift with the letter.
Windows: On Windows, turn on Num Lock, hold Alt and type the four-digit code on the numeric keypad. The Italian keyboard layout has keys for à, è, ì, ò, ù and é (Shift + è), but no key for the capital È: use Alt + 0200 instead of writing E'.
iPhone and Android: On iPhone and Android, press and hold a, e, i, o or u to see the accented versions, then slide to the one you want. Hold e to choose between è and é.
When does an Italian word need an accent?
Italian only requires a written accent when the stress falls on the last vowel of a word with two or more syllables. Everywhere else, the accent is left off.
- Words stressed on the final vowel: città, università, caffè, perché, così, però, più, virtù.
- Some one-syllable words take an accent to tell them apart from another word (see below). Others never do: re, tre, blu, qui, qua.
- The accent is written as a grave mark on à, ì, ò and ù. On e it can be grave (è) or acute (é), depending on the sound.
- “Un po'” uses an apostrophe, not an accent, because it is short for poco.
é or è? The “perché” rule
è is an open “eh” sound and é a closed “ay” sound. In practice, a short list of word endings covers almost every case:
- é (closed): words ending in -ché, such as perché, poiché, affinché, benché, finché; the words né and sé; compounds of tre such as ventitré and trentatré.
- è (open): è (is), caffè, tè, cioè, ahimè, and most loanwords like gilè.
- Typing perchè or poichè with a grave accent is one of the most common spelling mistakes in Italian. Use é.
Accents that change the meaning
These short words are spelled the same, and the accent is the only difference:
- è (is) / e (and) · là (there) / la (the)
- lì (there) / li (them) · sì (yes) / si (oneself)
- dà (gives) / da (from) · né (nor) / ne (of it)
- sé (oneself) / se (if) · tè (tea) / te (you)
Frequently asked questions
How do I type è on a keyboard?
On Windows, hold Alt and type 0232 on the numeric keypad (0200 for È). On a Mac, press Option+`, then E. On a phone, press and hold the e key and choose è. You can also click è on this page and copy it.
How do I type a capital È?
The Italian keyboard has no key for it, which is why people often write E' instead. On Windows, hold Alt and type 0200 on the numeric keypad. On a Mac, press Option+`, then Shift+E. Or turn on Shift above and click È.
Is it perché or perchè?
Perché, with an acute accent. The -ché words (perché, poiché, affinché, benché) all have a closed e, so they take é.
Which Italian accent is the most common?
The grave accent on è, because è (is) is one of the most frequent words in Italian. After that come final-stress words like città, più and perché.