How to Type ĭ (I with breve) on Mac

Published April 25, 2026, 2 min read

Typing ĭ (i with breve) on Mac takes a few seconds once you know the trick. The short answer is Option + 012D (Unicode Hex Input). Read on for step-by-step instructions, the uppercase Ĭ and what to do when a method does not work.

ĭ on Mac: Option + 012D (Unicode Hex Input)

Ĭ on Mac: Option + 012C (Unicode Hex Input)

Or copy it:

Method 1: Press and hold

Hold down the I key.
A row of accented versions appears above the cursor.
If ĭ is in the row, press the number under it or click it.

If nothing appears, press-and-hold is turned off. Run defaults write -g ApplePressAndHoldEnabled -bool true in Terminal and log out and back in.

Method 2: Unicode Hex Input

Open System Settings → Keyboard → Text Input → Edit, click +, and add Unicode Hex Input.
Switch to it from the input menu in the menu bar.
Hold Option and type 012D. ĭ appears when you release Option.

This works for every letter on this site, including ones with no Option shortcut.

Method 3: Character Viewer

Press Ctrl+Cmd+Space, search for "latin small letter i with breve", and double-click ĭ.

How to type the capital Ĭ

The uppercase form works the same way with Shift added where a letter is typed.

Press and hold

Hold down the I key with Shift.
A row of accented versions appears above the cursor.
If Ĭ is in the row, press the number under it or click it.

If nothing appears, press-and-hold is turned off. Run defaults write -g ApplePressAndHoldEnabled -bool true in Terminal and log out and back in.

Unicode Hex Input

Open System Settings → Keyboard → Text Input → Edit, click +, and add Unicode Hex Input.
Switch to it from the input menu in the menu bar.
Hold Option and type 012C. Ĭ appears when you release Option.

This works for every letter on this site, including ones with no Option shortcut.

About the letter ĭ

ĭ is Unicode U+012D, named LATIN SMALL LETTER I WITH BREVE. A small cup above a letter. Romanian uses ă, Turkish ğ, Vietnamese ă, and Esperanto ŭ. See the ĭ character page for every code and shortcut.

Troubleshooting

If holding a key repeats the letter, press-and-hold is off. Turn it back on with the Terminal command above.
Option shortcuts depend on the keyboard layout. They work on US and ABC; other layouts move them.
If Option+E shows a highlighted ´ but no letter appears, you pressed a letter that cannot take that accent.

Frequently asked questions

What is the shortcut for ĭ on Mac?

Option + 012D (Unicode Hex Input).

Can I just copy and paste ĭ?

Yes. Click the copy button above, then paste with Ctrl+V on Windows and Chromebook, Cmd+V on a Mac, or touch and hold and choose Paste on a phone.

What is the Unicode code for ĭ?

U+012D. In HTML it is ĭ.

Related guides

All accent shortcuts for Mac