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Use iPhone’s built-in Text Replacement setting to expand a short trigger into a word or phrase, or to add a word you use often without creating a trigger. Go to Settings > General > Keyboard > Text Replacement, tap Add, enter the text in Phrase, and—if you want a shortcut—enter its trigger in Shortcut. Tap Save.

How to create a keyboard shortcut

  1. Open Settings.
  2. Tap General, then Keyboard, then Text Replacement.
  3. Tap Add.
  4. Enter the full word or phrase you want inserted in Phrase.
  5. Enter the short trigger you want to type in Shortcut.
  6. Tap Save.

For example, you could set omw as the shortcut and On my way! as the phrase. Apple uses this example in its iPhone user guide. Choose a trigger that is easy to remember and unlikely to appear by accident in ordinary writing.

You can also open the keyboard settings while typing: hold the Emoji or Switch Keyboard key in a text field, then choose Keyboard Settings.

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Add a word without making a shortcut

To help keep the keyboard from changing a word or phrase you use, open Text Replacement, tap Add, enter the preferred text in Phrase, and leave Shortcut blank. Tap Save. Apple documents this as the way to add a word or phrase without setting up a replacement trigger.

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Phrase and Shortcut: what each field does

Entry What to enter Use it when
Phrase The word or longer text to insert You want to define the text the keyboard should enter.
Shortcut A short trigger you type You want that trigger to expand into the phrase.
Blank Shortcut Leave this field empty You want to add a preferred word or phrase without creating a trigger.

Text Replacement, Auto-Correction, and predictive text

These keyboard features do different jobs. Text Replacement expands a shortcut you define. Auto-Correction automatically corrects spelling, while predictive text suggests likely next words or phrases. If you want to type a phrase quickly, start with Text Replacement rather than changing predictive-text settings. Apple explains the distinction in its guide to Auto-Correction and predictive text.

Edit or delete a replacement

To remove an entry, open Settings > General > Keyboard > Text Replacement, tap Edit, tap Remove beside the entry, then tap Delete and Done.

Keep your personal dictionary up to date on other devices

Apple documents syncing the personal dictionary through iCloud Drive. On the iPhone, open Settings > [your name] > iCloud > See All > iCloud Drive, then turn on Sync this iPhone. Apple does not specify a sync delay, and this setting does not establish that every app will use every replacement.

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If a replacement does not appear

  • Check that the trigger and phrase were entered in the intended fields and that you tapped Save.
  • Try the trigger in a standard Apple text field. If it works there but not in a particular app, check that app’s keyboard or text-input behavior; support can vary.
  • If you meant to prevent an unwanted correction rather than expand a trigger, add the preferred text as a Phrase and leave Shortcut blank.
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Reset the keyboard dictionary only if you want to remove custom entries

Resetting the keyboard dictionary deletes all custom words and shortcuts and restores the default dictionary. To do so, open Settings > General > Transfer or Reset iPhone > Reset > Reset Keyboard Dictionary. Use this only if you intend to remove your custom entries; deleting one unwanted replacement individually is less disruptive.

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