What the ⌘ ⌥ ⌃ ⇧ symbols mean on a Mac

Why it happens

Mac menus have little room, so they show the keys for each shortcut as symbols. The keys sit on either side of the space bar, and most Apple keyboards print the same symbols on them. Once you know the four main ones, every shortcut in every menu makes sense.

How to fix it

1. ⌘ is Command, right next to the space bar. It's in most shortcuts: ⌘C copies, ⌘V pastes and ⌘Z undoes.

2. ⌥ is Option, next to Command. Some keyboards label it alt as well.

3. ⌃ is Control. On a MacBook it's near the bottom-left, next to the Globe or fn key. Holding Control while you click works like a right-click.

4. ⇧ is Shift, ⇪ is Caps Lock, and 🌐 is the Globe key, which is also marked fn on many keyboards.

5. You'll see a few more in menus: ⌫ is Delete, ⎋ is Escape, ↩ is Return and ⇥ is Tab.

6. To use a shortcut, hold the symbol keys first, then press the last key. For ⇧⌘N, hold Shift and Command together, then press N.

Still not fixed?

1. Looking for a command's shortcut? Open the app's menus: the keys are listed on the right of each item. Shift-Command-/ opens Help so you can search for any command by name.

   Menu bar›Help

2. Using a keyboard that wasn't made for a Mac? Command and Option may sit in different places. Swap what they do in Keyboard Shortcuts… under Modifier Keys.

   Keyboard›Keyboard Shortcuts…›Modifier Keys

3. To see what each key types, even with Option held down, turn on Show Input menu in menu bar, then choose Show Keyboard Viewer from that menu.

   Keyboard›Text Input›Edit…›Show Input menu in menu bar

4. If a key does nothing at all, even in a plain text document, it may be faulty. For a built-in keyboard, contact Apple Support or a repair shop, because that's a hardware repair.