![](https://help.apple.com/assets/5B897C42680CE20E60EA85A6/5B897C46680CE20E60EA85BC/en_AU/a7b42570fd1687e04b8d2fbdbb958ea9.png)
Use VoiceOver to select text on Mac
When cursor tracking is on, you can select text using standard macOS keyboard shortcuts, VoiceOver gestures, or Quick Nav.
Note: VO represents the VoiceOver modifier.
Use standard macOS shortcuts
Select the character to the right or left of the insertion point: Press Shift-Right Arrow or Shift-Left Arrow.
Select the word to the right or left of the insertion point: Press Shift-Option-Right Arrow or Shift-Option-Left Arrow.
Select the text from the keyboard cursor to the beginning or end of the line: Press Shift-Command-Right Arrow or Shift-Command-Left Arrow.
Select the text from the keyboard cursor to the beginning or end of the text area: Press Shift-Command-Up Arrow or Shift-Command-Down Arrow.
If you can’t select text using these shortcuts, press VO-Return. Press the VoiceOver modifier with arrow keys to read the text you want to select, then press VO-Return again. The text that was read is selected.
Use VoiceOver gestures
Rotate two fingers on the trackpad to open the gestures rotor, then continue rotating until you hear the Characters or Words list, or the Headings, Lines, or Static Text list.
To select text from the starting location to the next element in the rotor, pinch your fingers apart.
To deselect text, pinch your fingers together.
Use Quick Nav
Open the rotor by pressing Left Arrow-Up Arrow or Right Arrow-Up Arrow.
Jump to the Characters or Words list, or the Headings, Lines, or Static Text list, by pressing the Right Arrow and Up Arrow keys together (to jump to the next list) or the Left Arrow and Up Arrow keys together (to jump to the previous list).
Navigate the items in a list by pressing the Up Arrow or Down Arrow key, then select an item by pressing Shift-Down Arrow.
To deselect an item, press Shift-Up Arrow.
To delete selected text, press the Delete key. If you accidentally delete text, try pressing Command-Z to undo the mistake.