VocabularyHow-to5 min read
Custom Vocabulary for Mac Dictation: Get Names and Jargon Right
How to teach Mac dictation your names, product terms and jargon, so they come out spelled your way in every app.
Jay P ·
Dictation usually gets ordinary sentences right. The words that go wrong are the ones that matter most: a client's surname, a product codename, a drug name, a framework, an acronym your team says fifty times a day. One misheard name in an email can undo the time dictation saved.
A custom vocabulary fixes that at the source. Instead of correcting the same word after every dictation, you tell the speech model which words to listen for, and it spells them your way from then on. Speechy keeps that list in its Dictionary, and it applies in every Mac app you dictate into.
Quick answer: how to add custom vocabulary to Mac dictation
- Make a short list of the names and terms your dictation gets wrong most often.
- Add each one to your dictation app's vocabulary or dictionary, spelled exactly as you want it typed.
- Add replacements for words that should always become something else, such as a spoken nickname that should be typed as a full name.
- Dictate a test sentence with each new word in a quiet room.
- When a word is still misheard, correct it once and save the correction so the app learns it.
- Review the list every few weeks and remove terms you no longer use.
Why dictation gets names and jargon wrong
A speech model turns sound into the most likely words. Common words have millions of examples behind them. A surname like "Okonkwo", a product called "Lumen", or an acronym like "SOC 2" has far fewer, so the model picks something that sounds close and is more common.
Three kinds of words cause most errors:
- Names: people, companies and places, especially ones with several spellings.
- Product and project terms: internal codenames, feature names and brand spellings with unusual capitals.
- Field jargon: legal citations, medical terms, technical identifiers and acronyms.
A vocabulary list does not change how you speak. It changes what the model expects to hear, which is why one entry can fix a word everywhere.
Vocabulary, replacements and snippets: what each one does
Most dictation apps offer more than one tool for custom words. They solve different problems, so it helps to know which to reach for.
| Tool | What it does | Use it for |
|---|---|---|
| Vocabulary | Tells the speech model to listen for a word and spell it your way | Names, brands, jargon, acronyms |
| Replacement | When the app hears one thing, it writes another | A word it keeps mishearing the same way, a short form that should become a long one |
| Snippet | A spoken trigger that types a saved block of text | Addresses, links, sign-offs, standard replies |
| Correction learning | Saves a fix after you retype a misheard word | Words you did not think to add up front |
Say it. Speechy writes it.
Hold Fn, speak, and clean text lands in any app on your Mac.
In Speechy these all live together. Replacements match whole words, so they never change part of a longer word, and voice snippets type saved text when you say their trigger.
A worked example: a product manager's launch week
Consider Lena, a product manager getting ready for a launch. Her messages are full of words a general model has never seen: the feature is called "Halo Sync", the partner company is "Quorvia", and her engineers are Tomasz and Ngozi.
Before adding anything, she dictates: "Halo sync goes to Quorvia on Thursday, Tomasz and Ngozi own the rollout." The first attempt comes back as "Hello sync goes to Corvia on Thursday, Thomas and Nancy own the rollout." Four errors in one sentence.
She adds "Halo Sync", "Quorvia", "Tomasz" and "Ngozi" to her dictionary, spelled exactly as they should appear. She also adds a replacement so "the H S launch" is typed as "the Halo Sync launch". The same sentence now comes out right on the first try, in Slack, in Gmail and in her Notion launch doc.
For the app-specific steps, see the guides to dictating in Slack, Gmail and Notion.
How to build a vocabulary list that works
Start small. Ten well-chosen words fix more errors than a hundred random ones. Look through your last week of messages and pick the names and terms you typed most often.
Spell every entry exactly as you want it typed, including capitals and spaces. "macOS", "iPhone" and "SOC 2" should go in with the capitals you use.
Add the people you write to most. Names are the most common error and the most embarrassing one to send. Speechy can also use your Mac's Contacts as spelling hints, so the people you know come out spelled the way they spell it.
Test each new word in a sentence, not on its own. Speech models use the words around a term to decide what you said, so "send the Quorvia contract" is a better test than "Quorvia" alone.
Prune the list. Old project names that sound like ordinary words can start replacing the ordinary word. Remove terms when a project ends.
Say it. Speechy writes it.
Hold Fn, speak, and clean text lands in any app on your Mac.
How Speechy handles custom vocabulary across Mac apps
Speechy transcribes your voice with a model that runs on your Mac, and your Dictionary is part of what that model listens for. Speechy, your name and your Mac's name are added for you, and you add the rest.
You do not have to type your list from scratch. Paste a list of names in any shape, one per line or separated by commas, and Speechy sorts it into words and replacements for you to check. If you used another dictation app before, you can import your dictionary from Wispr Flow, Superwhisper, Aqua Voice, Monologue or Willow Voice.
When Speechy still mishears a word, retype it right after it pastes. Speechy learns from that correction: the pill shows what you changed and offers to add the word to your Dictionary in one click.
Speechy also reads the text in the window you are dictating into, so names already on screen, like the sender of the email you are replying to, are easier to get right.
Limits of custom vocabulary
A vocabulary list improves the odds, it does not guarantee a spelling. A word that sounds exactly like a common one can still lose to it when you speak quickly or the room is noisy.
Very long lists can work against you. Too many rare words make it more likely that an ordinary word gets swapped for one of them. Keep the list to terms you actually say.
Pronunciation still matters. If you say a name two different ways, add the spelling once and say it the same way each time. Read your message before you send it when it contains names, numbers or commitments.
FAQ about custom vocabulary for Mac dictation
Does Apple Dictation support a custom vocabulary?
Apple Dictation has no list where you add words for its speech model to listen for. If your names and terms keep coming out wrong, a dedicated dictation app with a vocabulary list is the way to fix them at the source.
How many words should I add?
Start with the ten to thirty words that cause the most errors in your week. Add more as new names come up, and remove terms when projects end.
Will my vocabulary work in every app?
In Speechy, yes. The Dictionary applies wherever you dictate on your Mac, and replacements can be set for all apps or just one.
What is the difference between a vocabulary word and a replacement?
A vocabulary word tells the model what to listen for. A replacement changes what gets typed after the model has heard something. Use vocabulary for names and jargon, and replacements for words it keeps mishearing the same way.
Can I move my dictionary from another app?
Speechy imports words, replacements and snippets you saved in Wispr Flow, Superwhisper, Aqua Voice, Monologue or Willow Voice. Only entries you added yourself come over.
If names and jargon are where your dictation goes wrong, download Speechy, add your ten most-missed words, and dictate your next message with them.