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WindowsSpeech Recognition lets you control your PC by voice alone, without needing a keyboard or mouse. This articlelists commands that you can use with Speech Recognition.
For instructionson how to set up Speech Recognition for the first time, refer toUse voice recognition in Windows.
Notes:
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Any time you need to find out what commands to use, say "What can I say?"
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Speech Recognition is available onlyfor the following languages: English (United States, United Kingdom, Canada, India, and Australia), French, German, Japanese, Mandarin (Chinese Simplified and Chinese Traditional), and Spanish.
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In the following tables,a bolded word or phrase meansit's an example. Replace it with similar words to get the result you want.
In this topic
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Common Speech Recognition commands
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Commands for dictation
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Commands for the keyboard
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Commands for punctuation marks and special characters
(Video) Windows 10 Speech Recognition Software 10 minute Tutorial. -
Commands for Windows and apps
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Commands for using the mouse
Common Speech Recognition commands
| To do this | Say this |
|---|---|
| Open Start | Start |
| Open Cortana Note:Cortana is available onlyin certain countries/regions, and some Cortana features might not be available everywhere. If Cortana isn't available or is turned off, you can still use search. | Press Windows C |
| Open Search | Press Windows S |
| Perform an action in an app | Right-click; Press Windows Z; press ctrl B |
| Select an item by its name | File; Start; View |
| Select an item or icon | Click Recycle Bin; Click Computer; Click file name |
| Double-click an item | Double-click Recycle Bin; Double-click Computer; Double-click file name |
| Switch to an open app | Switch to Paint; Switch to WordPad; Switch to program name; Switch application |
| Scroll in one direction | Scroll up; Scroll down; Scroll left; Scroll right |
| Insert a new paragraph or new line in a document | New paragraph; New line |
| Select a word in a document | Select word |
| Select a word and start to correct it | Correct word |
| Select and delete specific words | Delete word |
| Show a list of applicable commands | What can I say? |
| Update the list of speech commands that are currently available | Refresh speech commands |
| Turn on listening mode | Start listening |
| Turn off listening mode | Stop listening |
| Move the Speech Recognition microphone bar | Move speech recognition |
| Minimize the microphone bar | Minimize speech recognition |
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Commands for dictation
| To do this | Say this |
|---|---|
| Insert a new line in the document | New line |
| Insert a new paragraph in the document | New paragraph |
| Insert a tab | Tab |
| Insert the literal word (for example, insert the word "comma" instead of the punctuation mark) | Literal word |
| Insert the numeral form of a number (for examples, insert 3 instead of the word three) | Numeral number |
| Put the cursor before a specific word | Go to word |
| Put the cursor after a specific word | Go after word |
| Don't insert a space before the next word | No space |
| Go to the start of the current sentence | Go to start of sentence |
| Go to the start of the current paragraph | Go to start of paragraph |
| Go to the start of the current document | Go to start of document |
| Go to the end of the current sentence | Go to end of sentence |
| Go to the end of the current paragraph | Go to end of paragraph |
| Go to the end of the current document | Go to end of document |
| Select a word in the current document | Select word |
| Select a word range in the current document | Select word range; Select word through word |
| Select all text in the current document | Select all |
| Select a number of words before the location of the cursor | Select previous 20 words; Select previous 10 words |
| Select a number of words after the location of the cursor | Select next 20 words; Select next 10 words |
| Select the last text you dictated | Select that |
| Clear the selection on the screen | Clear selection |
| Capitalize the first letter of a word | Caps word |
| Capitalize all the letters of a word | All caps word |
| Make all the letters in a word lowercase | No caps word |
| Change the next number of words to uppercase | Change next 10 words to uppercase |
| Change the next number of words to lowercase | Change next 10 words to lowercase |
| Delete the previous sentence | Delete previous sentence |
| Delete the next sentence | Delete next sentence |
| Delete the previous paragraph | Delete previous paragraph |
| Delete the next paragraph | Delete next paragraph |
| Delete the selected or last dictated text | Delete that |
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Commands for the keyboard
| To do this | Say this |
|---|---|
| Press a key or key combination | Press keyboard key; press A; press capital B; press Shift plus A; press Ctrl plus A |
| Press certain keyboard keys without saying "press" first | Delete; Backspace; Enter; Page Up; Page Down; Home; End; Tab |
Notes:
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You can also use the ICAONATO phonetic alphabet. For example, say "press alpha" to press A or "press bravo" to press B.
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Speech Recognition commands for the keyboard works only with languages that use Latin alphabets.
(Video) HOW TO use Speech Recognition Built Into Windows 10 and 11
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Commands for punctuation marks and special characters
| To Insert this | Say this |
|---|---|
| , | Comma |
| ; | Semicolon |
| . | Period; Dot; Decimal point |
| : | Colon |
| " | Open double quote; Open quote |
| " | Close double quote; Close quote; Close inverted commas |
| ' | Apostrophe |
| ' | Open single quote |
| ' | Close single quote |
| > | Greater than sign |
| < | Less than sign |
| / | Forward slash |
| \ | Backslash |
| ~ | Tilde |
| @ | At sign |
| ! | Exclamation mark; Exclamation point |
| ? | Question mark |
| # | Number sign; Pound sign |
| $ | Dollar sign |
| % | Percent sign |
| ^ | Caret |
| ( | Open parenthesis; Open paren |
| ) | Close parenthesis; Close paren |
| _ | Underscore |
| - | Hyphen; Minus sign; Dash |
| - | En dash |
| - | Em dash |
| = | Equal sign |
| + | Plus sign |
| { | Open brace; Open curly bracket |
| } | Close brace; Close curly bracket |
| [ | Open bracket; Open square bracket |
| ] | Close bracket; Close square bracket |
| | | Vertical bar |
| :-) | Smiley face |
| :-( | Frowny face |
| ;-) | Winky face |
| ™ | Trademark sign |
| ¾ | Three-quarter sign |
| ¼ | One-quarter sign |
| ½ | One-half sign |
| £ | Pound sterling sign |
| & | Ampersand; And sign |
| * | Asterisk |
| // | Double slash |
| ` | Back quote |
| < | Open angle bracket |
| > | Close angle bracket |
| ± | Plus or minus sign |
| « | Open angle quote |
| » | Close angle quote |
| × | Multiplication sign |
| ÷ | Division sign |
| ¢ | Cent sign |
| ¥ | Yen sign |
| § | Section sign |
| © | Copyright sign |
| ® | Registered sign; Registered trademark sign |
| ° | Degree sign |
| ¶ | Paragraph sign |
| ... | Ellipsis; Dot dot dot |
| ƒ | Function sign |
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Commands for Windowsand apps
| To do this | Say this |
|---|---|
| Select an item by its name | File; Start; View |
| Select an item or icon | Click Recycle Bin; click Computer; click file name |
| Double-click an item | Double-click Computer; double-click Recycle Bin; double-click folder name |
| Right-click an item | Right-click Computer; right-click Recycle Bin; right-click folder name |
| Minimize all windows to show your desktop | Show desktop |
| Select something if you don't know what it's called | Show numbers (Numbers will appear on the screen for every item in the active window. Say an item's corresponding number to select it.) |
| Select a numbered item | 19 OK; 5 OK |
| Double-click a numbered item | Double-click 19; Double-click 5 |
| Right-click a numbered item | Right-click 19; Right-click 5 |
| Open an app | Open Paint; Open WordPad; Open app name |
| Switch to an open app | Switch to Paint; Switch to WordPad; Switch to app name; Switch application |
| Close an app | Close that; Close Paint; Close Documents |
| Minimize | Minimize that; Minimize Paint; Minimize Documents |
| Maximize | Maximize that; Maximize Paint; Maximize Documents |
| Restore | Restore that; Restore Paint; Restore Documents |
| Cut | Cut that; Cut |
| Copy | Copy that; Copy |
| Paste | Paste |
| Delete | Delete that; Delete |
| Undo | Undo that; Scratch that; Undo |
| Scroll in one direction | Scroll up; Scroll down; Scroll right; Scroll left |
| Scroll an exact distance in pages | Scroll down 2 pages; Scroll up 10 pages |
| Scroll an exact distance in other units | Scroll up 5; Scroll down 7 |
| Go to a field in a form or app | Go to field name; Go to Subject; Go to Address; Go to cc |
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Commands for using the mouse
| To do this | Say this |
|---|---|
| Show the mousegrid | Mousegrid |
| Move the pointer to the center of a mousegrid square | Number of the square; 1; 7; 9 |
| Select a mousegrid square | Click number of the square |
| Select an item to drag with the mouse | Number of the square where the item appears (followed by) mark; 3 mark; 7 mark; 9 mark |
| Select an area in the mousegrid where you want to drag the item | Number of the square where you want to drag the item (followed by) click; 4 click; 5 click; 6 click |
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See also
Use voice recognition in Windows
Discover Windows accessibility features
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FAQs
How do I turn off Windows Speech Recognition commands? ›
- Click Start then type: Change text to speech options in search bar.
- Hit enter.
- Select the Speech Recognition tab.
- Under 'User Settings' uncheck 'Run speech recognition at startup'
- Click Apply and OK.
- In a web browser, go to Speech Studio.
- Enter your credentials to sign in to the portal. The default view is your list of Speech resources. ...
- Select your Speech resource, and then select Go to Studio.
- Select Custom Commands.
Windows Speech Recognition lets you control your PC by voice alone, without needing a keyboard or mouse.
Why is my Windows speech recognition not working? ›Voice typing needs access to your microphone. You'll need to turn this on in settings to use speech to text. Select Start > Settings > Privacy & security > Microphone, and make sure Microphone access is turned on.
Can I uninstall Microsoft Server Speech Recognition? ›You will not be able to uninstall speech recognition from the computer, you can only disable from starting up automatically on the computer. You can manually start it from control panel. Go to Speech Recognition Options; click Advanced Speech Options on the left hand side of the window.
How do I permanently disable Speech Recognition in Windows 11? ›- Do one of the following: In Windows 10, go to Start > Settings > Privacy > Speech. In Windows 11, go to Start > Settings > Privacy & security > Speech.
- Change the Online speech recognition, setting to On or Off.
- Open your device's Settings app .
- Tap Accessibility, then tap Voice Access.
- Tap Use Voice Access.
- Start Voice Access in one of these ways: ...
- Say a command, such as "Open Gmail." Learn more Voice Access commands.
- Say, “Hey Google” to activate Google Assistant.
- Next say, “Assistant settings.” An Assistant settings screen will appear on your phone.
- Tap See All Assistant Settings.
- Scroll down and click Shortcuts.
- Tap the name of the app you want to create a shortcut for.
Speech Recognition is another option if you want to control Windows 8.1, 10, or 11 with your voice. To set this up, open Control Panel in icon view and click the Speech Recognition applet. Choose the Start Speech Recognition link to set up the feature.
How does speech recognition work? ›Voice recognition systems analyze speech through one of two models: the hidden Markov model and neural networks. The hidden Markov model breaks down spoken words into their phonemes, while recurrent neural networks use the output from previous steps to influence the input to the current step.
What can go wrong with Speech Recognition programs? ›
- Voices In The Background. ...
- Speedy Talking, Dialects and More. ...
- Music or Loud Noises in The Background. ...
- A Speaker's Distance From The Microphone. ...
- Similar-Sounding Words.
- Click or tap on the system tray on the taskbar.
- Click or tap the microphone icon to open the Speech Recognition settings menu.
- Select 'Configuration'.
- Then select 'Improve voice recognition'.
According to Microsoft, the rate of accuracy when trained is 99%.
How do I get rid of speech service? ›- Go to Settings on your phone and select Google.
- Go to Settings for Google apps.
- Tap on Search, Assistant and Voice.
- Go to Voice. ...
- Tap on Offline speech recognition.
- Go to the Installed tab, tap on the installed language, and hit Uninstall.
Yes, voice recognition is secure, especially when compared to classic logins that require a username and password.
What is the difference between Windows speech recognition and voice access? ›What are the differences between the new voice access and the classic Windows Speech Recognition (WSR)? Voice access is the new command feature which is currently available for US English (EN-US). WSR is the classic command feature which is available in multiple languages.
What are the four different ways to perform speaker recognition? ›Speaker recognition is a pattern recognition problem. The various technologies used to process and store voice prints include frequency estimation, hidden Markov models, Gaussian mixture models, pattern matching algorithms, neural networks, matrix representation, vector quantization and decision trees.
What is a command in speech? ›Commands are a type of sentence in which someone is being told to do something. There are three other sentence types: questions, exclamations and statements. Command sentences usually, but not always, start with an imperative (bossy) verb because they tell someone to do something.
Can I make custom voice commands? ›You can create your own commands for your Google Assistant with IFTTT. Learn about services and devices you can control. For example, if you say: "Hey Google, activate 'tell my friends I'm going sailing,'" then a status update is posted to your social network.
What are the Voice Access commands? ›...
General commands
- Open [app]
- Go back.
- Go home.
- Show notifications.
- Show Quick Settings.
- Show recent apps.
Can I change the voice command? ›
On your Android phone or tablet, say "Hey Google, open Assistant settings". Or go to Assistant settings. Under "All settings", tap Assistant voice. Choose a voice.
How accurate is voice recognition? ›Speech recognition accuracy rates are 90% to 95%. Here's a basic breakdown of how speech recognition works: A microphone translates the vibrations of a person's voice into an electrical signal. A computer or similar system converts that signal into a digital signal.
Where is voice recognition used? ›Many of these different smart home devices, such as thermostats and security systems, also make use of voice activation for that same purpose. Laptops & tablets: It's now common for laptops and tablets to have voice recognition built into the device so you can embrace a hands-free experience when you need or want to.
Does Microsoft Word have speech recognition? ›Dictation lets you use speech-to-text to author content in Microsoft 365 with a microphone and reliable internet connection. It's a quick and easy way to get your thoughts out, create drafts or outlines, and capture notes. while signed into Microsoft 365 on a mic-enabled device.
Does Windows 11 have speech recognition? ›To get started in Windows 11, go to Settings, select Accessibility, and then choose the setting for Speech (Figure A). At the settings screen for Speech, turn on the switch for Windows Speech Recognition. A welcome window pops up inviting you to set up your computer to recognize your voice.
How do you change speech recognition in Windows? ›Go to Start and open Settings . Select Time & language > Language. Select the language you want to add speech to, and then select the Next button. Select the speech options you want included with the language.
What is the shortcut for speech recognition? ›Place the cursor where you want to enter text. Press the Windows key + H keys to open the speech recognition tool.
What are the three types of speech recognition? ›There are two types of speech recognition. One is called speaker–dependent and the other is speaker–independent. Speaker–dependent software is commonly used for dictation software, while speaker–independent software is more commonly found in telephone applications.
What are the three steps of speech recognition? ›Speech recognition involves three processes: extraction of acoustic indices from the speech signal, estimation of the probability that the observed index string was caused by a hypothesized utterance segment, and determination of the recognized utterance via a search among hypothesized alternatives.
Why is speech recognition difficult? ›Automatic children speech recognition is always challenging due to limited corpus and varying acoustic features. One among those is zero speech corpus and large acoustic variability which limits the power of learning of training dataset.
What are the limitations of speech recognition? ›
Speech recognition software may not be able to transliterate the words of those who speak quickly, run words together or have an accent. It also drops in accuracy when more than one speaker is present and being recorded.
What are the cons of speech recognition? ›There are limitations to speech recognition software. It does not always work across all operating systems. Noisy environments, accents and multiple speakers may degrade results. Also, regular voice recognition software can lack integration with other key services.
Can you improve your speech recognition? ›One of the most important factors for improving voice recognition is to use a high-quality headset microphone that holds the microphone in a consistent position directly in front of your mouth; desktop-based microphones typically provide less desirable voice-recognition results because they don't remain consistently ...
How do I permanently turn off Speech Recognition? ›Right-click on the Start button and select Settings. Go to Privacy & security >> Speech. Turn OFF the switch for online speech recognition.
How do I turn off key commands? ›- Open the Local Group Policy Editor and navigate to the File Explorer option as per the previous steps.
- Double-click on the Turn off Windows Key Hotkeys option and select either Not Configured or Disabled.
- Close the Local Group Policy Editor and restart your PC to save these changes.