How to Put Accents Over Words on a Cellphone

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Accents often occur over vowels, so try holding the nearest vowel key.

Smartphones let you type emails, send text messages and perform other typing tasks on the go. If your typing needs include accented letters, particularly common with vowels and when typing foreign names, the standard virtual keyboard may not help. Your options vary by phone make and model, but many phones have the accents built right into your keypad; you just need to know how to access them. Whether you want Spanish, French, German or other foreign language accents, you may be just a finger tap away from getting the letters and accents you need.


Step 1

Launch your email, text or other app on your phone that you want to type in.

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Step 2

Type as you normally would until you get to a word you need to accent.

Step 3

Press and hold the letter on the virtual keypad that is closest to the accented letter you want. For example, if you want the accented "e" that is common in Spanish, press and hold the "e" key. If your phone has this feature, several options will appear, showing the letter "e" with various accents and related symbols.


Step 4

Slide your finger up to the appropriate accented letter when it appears. Release your finger when the letter you want is highlighted.

Step 5

Repeat the press and hold process for each letter you want to accent.


If this method does not work on your phone, check the manufacturer's specifications. You may need to download alternate language keyboards for your phone.

Some keyboard numbers also allow you to access symbols or special characters. For example, you can type a degree sign if you press and hold the zero key.