Diacritic May 2026

⚡ While many English writers omit these marks for speed, keeping them adds a layer of precision and cultural context to your writing.

They distinguish words that look identical, like the verb resume (to start again) vs. the noun résumé (a CV).

Shows that two vowels are pronounced separately rather than as a blend, seen in naïve or Brontë . diacritic

Indicates a nasalized sound or a "ny" blend, common in jalapeño .

They act as a "guide" for the reader, ensuring names like Zoë aren't mispronounced as "Zo". ⚡ While many English writers omit these marks

Used in English primarily for poetic effect to show an extra syllable is pronounced, like learnèd .

Using a diacritic often signals that a word is a "loanword" from another language (e.g., frappé or açai ). Shows that two vowels are pronounced separately rather

If you don't have a dedicated keyboard, you can use these shortcuts in or Outlook : Key Shortcut Acute Ctrl + ' , then letter á, é, ó Grave Ctrl + ` , then letter Tilde Ctrl + Shift + ~ , then letter Umlaut Ctrl + Shift + : , then letter Cedilla Ctrl + , , then c 💡 Why They Matter