AnimeLang
How to type German umlauts and ß
You don't need a German keyboard. The one you have already types ä, ö, ü and ß; here's how on each device.
Typing a word yourself is part of learning it, and AnimeLang counts a missing umlaut as a spelling mistake: schon means “already” and schön means “beautiful”.
On a Mac
Keep the keyboard you have, U.S. or ABC. Press and hold a letter, say e, and a menu of its accents appears: click one, or press the number under it.
Quicker, once you know them, are the Option keys. For an accent, press Option with the accent's key, then the letter:
- ä ö ü: Option-U, then the vowel.
- ß is Option-S.
- For a capital, hold Shift on the letter: Option-U, then Shift-A, gives Ä.
To see them all, open Keyboard Viewer and hold Option: the accent keys are outlined in orange.
On Windows 11
Add one keyboard, United States-International: the US keyboard with accents added.
- Open Settings › Time & language › Language & region.
- Next to English (United States), choose … › Language options › Add a keyboard and add United States-International.
- Switch between it and your usual keyboard with Windows key + Space.
Then, for an accent, press the accent's key, then the letter:
- ä ö ü: " (Shift-'), then the vowel. Or Right Alt + Q, Right Alt + P and Right Alt + Y.
- ß is Right Alt + S.
- For a capital, hold Shift too: Right Alt + Shift + Q gives Ä.
- No Right Alt key? Ctrl + Alt does the same.
- On this keyboard ' and " wait for the next key. For an apostrophe or a quote mark on its own, press it and then the space bar.
On an iPhone or iPad
- Touch and hold a letter, say e, then slide your finger to the accent you want and let go.
On Android
- In Gboard, touch and hold a key to see its accents and other options.
From Apple's, Microsoft's and Google's own help: Mac, Windows, United States-International, iPhone and Gboard.