What do special characters like á, à, â, ã, ä, å, ă, and ą mean? Get link Facebook X Pinterest Email Other Apps Please share your answer in the answers box below. Your help can support others with the same question. Get link Facebook X Pinterest Email Other Apps Comments Efukikata EfetMay 7, 2025 at 9:53 AMThese are diacritical marks (accent symbols) used in various languages to modify letters. Here’s what they mean:á, à, â, ã, ä, å (on *A/a*):á: Acute accent (e.g., Spanish "mamá") → stressed syllable or pitch.à: Grave accent (French "où") → pronunciation or grammatical distinction.â: Circumflex (Portuguese "lâmpada") → vowel height or historical spelling.ã: Tilde (Portuguese "maçã") → nasalized vowel.ä: Umlaut (German "Mädchen") → vowel fronting (changes sound, like ‘a’ to ‘eh’).å: Swedish/Norwegian "år" (year) → a unique ‘aw’ sound.ă, ą (on *A/a*):ă: Breve (Romanian "copilă") → short vowel.ą: Ogonek (Polish "jądro") → nasal vowel (like French ‘on’).Why they matter:They change pronunciation (e.g., German "schon" vs. "schön").They distinguish meaning (Spanish "si" = ‘if’, "sí" = ‘yes’).They preserve etymology (French "hôtel" from Latin "hospitale").Fun fact: English mostly dropped these (except in loanwords like "naïve"), but they’re essential in 100+ languages!Ever struggled typing these? On Windows: Hold Alt + numeric codes (e.g., Alt+0225 = á). On Mac: Hold Option + letter. Or just copy-paste! ReplyDeleteRepliesReplyAdd commentLoad more... Post a Comment
These are diacritical marks (accent symbols) used in various languages to modify letters. Here’s what they mean:
ReplyDeleteá, à, â, ã, ä, å (on *A/a*):
á: Acute accent (e.g., Spanish "mamá") → stressed syllable or pitch.
à: Grave accent (French "où") → pronunciation or grammatical distinction.
â: Circumflex (Portuguese "lâmpada") → vowel height or historical spelling.
ã: Tilde (Portuguese "maçã") → nasalized vowel.
ä: Umlaut (German "Mädchen") → vowel fronting (changes sound, like ‘a’ to ‘eh’).
å: Swedish/Norwegian "år" (year) → a unique ‘aw’ sound.
ă, ą (on *A/a*):
ă: Breve (Romanian "copilă") → short vowel.
ą: Ogonek (Polish "jądro") → nasal vowel (like French ‘on’).
Why they matter:
They change pronunciation (e.g., German "schon" vs. "schön").
They distinguish meaning (Spanish "si" = ‘if’, "sí" = ‘yes’).
They preserve etymology (French "hôtel" from Latin "hospitale").
Fun fact: English mostly dropped these (except in loanwords like "naïve"), but they’re essential in 100+ languages!
Ever struggled typing these? On Windows: Hold Alt + numeric codes (e.g., Alt+0225 = á). On Mac: Hold Option + letter. Or just copy-paste!