How To Do Underscore On Mac [Answered!]

Learning to use a different keyboard and learning how to type on them can be quite an adjustment to make, but there will still be lingering questions of how to do something that you haven’t needed to do before. So, how do you underscore on a Mac?

To underscore on a Mac, a person will simply press and hold the Shift button, then press the underscore or dash key. Depending on the layout of the keyboard, the dash/underscore key should be found in between the number 0 and the addition and equal sign key.

Below are more detailed instructions on how to underscore and underline on a Mac for those wanting step-by-step instructions.

Where is the _ Key?

The underscore key is not difficult to find on the keyboard of a Mac. The key itself looks like two horizontal lines, the top line being the underscore and it is longer, and the bottom line is the dash line. It is found in the top right-hand corner of the keyboard. (Source)

On your keyboard, you should be aware of how to use shift to use special character keys and to capitalize letters. The caps lock key does the same thing as shift, but just for letters.

Whatever you type will stay capitalized until you press caps lock again and turn it off. These keys are important to know about so that you can use them properly, like in using shift to underscore.

You will find the underscore key between the zero and the equal sign. If you want to make a dash, which looks like ” – “, then you will not press and hold shift. When you press and hold shift on the dash/underscore key it will make ” _ “.

How do You Type an Underscore on a Keyboard?

To use any special character symbols you will press the shift button, and as you are holding that down you will press the desired button. If you are using a Mac right now, then look down at the keyboard and look at the numbers. Above each number, there is a symbol.

Above 1 is “!”, above 2 is the “@” sign, above 3 is the “#” sign, and so on. To use these different symbols you need to press shift, or else you will only get the bottom symbol or number on the button. So for the underscore, you will shift, hold that button, then press the underscore/dash key, then let go of both keys you were touching.

That principle is the same on many keys on a keyboard, and typing an underscore is not as tricky as some believe. So, after understanding how to type an underscore key, maybe there are similar keys you want to use, but you don’t know how yet. To learn how to underline, read below.

How do You Underline on a Mac Keyboard?

To underline on a Mac, there are a few things to try. Depending on the program you are writing and typing in, you might have a couple of options of how to underline.

The first way to underline is to use the underline button in your writing program. For instance, if you are using Microsoft Word or Google Docs, then you can highlight the word, phrase, sentence, or paragraph and to up into the toolbar and find the underline button.

With your mouse or keypad, you will click on that and it will underline the highlighted area. The underline button looks like a capital “U” with a line under it. It is next to where you can size the words, change the font, bold the words, italicize the words, and more. It is not a hidden button, so you should find it pretty easy.

The next way you can underline is by pressing some keys on your keyboard and having it underline everything you write after pressing the sequence of buttons.

To turn on underlining while you are typing you will press the command key followed by the U key. Press and hold command while you press on U, and it will start underlining everything you type. To turn the underlining off, you simply press the buttons again and it stops underlining the words.

These are easy tools to use when writing, and they can make your time be used more efficiently. Instead of using the long way to try and underline, for example, you can simply use the combination of command and U and it will underline for you. It is fast and for those up against the clock on papers or work, you can use these tips to finish your work faster.

When to Use an Underscore or Underline?

In today’s day and age, the underscore is used to show a space where a space can’t be used. Mainly, you will see it in usernames, email addresses, passwords, and more. It is also used when writing fill-in-the-blank questions or statements on papers. That way when you print the paper, you have a line to write on top of. (Source)

The underscore key was made for the typewriter. When people needed to underline words or sentences, they would write out what they wanted and then go back and reset the paper so that they could use the underscore button to make a line under the words.

Today, on a computer, you can’t type on top of an underscore line, but you can use the underline tool to underline your words while you type. So, because you cannot type words on top of an underscore, computer innovators made the underline tool to make sure you can have typed words underlined when you need.

The most common examples of where you see an underscore today would be seen as:

1. name_lastname@source.com
2. ___________ means to be overjoyed or extremely happy.
3. Signature ___________________

The first example is an email, the next is what kids might see on a vocabulary test at school, and the last example is one adults see often which is the place to sign their name. Each of these examples uses underscores but in different scenarios and for different purposes.