
This will then handily bring up the OS X dictionary definition of the word and put you back in the know. You will find that in most OS X programs if you're unsure of the meaning of any word, you can hold down Cmd + Ctrl + D while hovering the cursor over it. Use this shortcut to bring up the Force Quit dialog – this will then enable you to stop the application with extreme prejudice… If an application has annoyingly locked up and all you get is the dreaded spinning beach ball when you mouse over it, simply press Cmd + Option + Esc. If you press Cmd + Option + +/-, this will Zoom in or out of the screen and you can then move the mouse to easily pan around the page. This function will need to be enabled in the Universal Access pane in System Preferences first, but once it's activated it will enable you to zoom in or out of the screen. Keep pressing the Tab key to step through which application you'll switch to ( Shift reverses the direction), or point with your cursor to select one. The Application switcher saves you from having to go to the Dock to change the application you're using.
#Key commands for word mac windows
If you press Cmd + H this will instantly hide all the windows of the application that you're working with.Īlso, if you hold down Option as well, it will hide all the applications except the one you're working on, getting rid of all that annoying screen clutter. Why not take a screenshot, then mail the image instead? Cmd + Shift + 3 captures the whole screen, while Cmd + Shift + 4 gives you crosshairs. How many times have you tried to describe an error message you're getting, only to be faced with confusion? If you press Cmd + Option + D, this shortcut will niftily toggle between hiding and revealing the Dock. How often have you wanted to get rid of the Dock so you can give yourself more room on your screen, but didn't want to go through all the menu options to hide it? In fact, you'll find it works in nearly every application on the Mac. Open your program's Edit menu and click on Select All.It also works for closing individual tabs in Safari. It is called Select All, and it allows you to select the entire content of your document, including all the text.

While most of the times you have to rely on your mouse and keyboard to select text when using text editors, there is one command in their Edit menu worth mentioning. To create this tutorial, we used Notes and Pages - the default apps used for handling text on macOS.
#Key commands for word mac how to
How to select text using an app's Edit menu Last, but not least, the Command(⌘) - A shortcut selects the entire contents of your document, and you can perform the same action from the Edit menu of programs used for editing text on macOS, as seen in the next section. Instead, it extends your selection to include in it the entire document. TIP: Using Command(⌘) and Shift with one arrow and then with the opposite one does not deselect text.

After starting a text selection, you can continue using the shortcut to extend it to include everything in between your cursor and the closest character two rows up, and so on.
