An i with two dots isn’t a common letter in English, but you might have come across it before. It’s most prevalent in the word “naïve,” and it would help to learn more about it. This article will explore everything you need to know about an “I” with two dots.
What Does ï Mean?
An i with two dots is known as a diaeresis. This is the name given to two dots above a vowel in European languages to express that they should be sounded differently. It is most common in “naïve,” where the “I” should be sounded separated from the “a.”
To put this into perspective, you can remove the diaeresis and be met with this problem:
Naive
While it’s clear that “naive” is pronounced “ny-eve” because of how common it is to hear it in English, the diaeresis is not present. Technically, you could pronounce “naive” as “nave” or “knive” because nothing indicates that the “a” and “i” should be pronounced separately.
When to Use ï (Two Dots)
Officially speaking, you do not have to use the i with two dots in English. There is no reason to do so as it has been replaced by the simpler “i” that appears in the English alphabet.
You may include “ï” in French words like “naïve” where it originated. It is grammatically correct to write “naïve” in this way. However, it is not idiomatic, and most native speakers will wonder why you are writing it like this.
Still, here are a few examples to show you when you can use “ï:”
I think you’re far too naïve about all of this. I wish you would open your eyes.
Stop being so naïve. I don’t understand why you’re like this. It’s so easy to behave in a better way.
You’re too naïve for your own good. I cannot stand talking to you when you get like this.
When to Use i (One Dot)
You should use i with one dot in almost every situation in English. It’s much more common to see an “i” appear like this.
After all, “i” is the ninth letter of the English alphabet. You shouldn’t include extra letters in your writing when they do not belong to the alphabet you’re writing with.
It would be similar to including Cyrillic letters (from the Russian alphabet) in your English essays. While there are some instances where this might be useful, it is almost never going to help you explain something to an English reader.
Even in words like “naive,” it is more common to see an “i” with one dot today. You should stick to using it in this form to make sure all your readers understand what you’re writing about.
Here are some examples to show you how an “i” with one dot works:
I’m being a bit naive, and I totally understand if you don’t want to talk to me again.
Stop being so naive, Mathew. You can’t keep living your life like this because it makes no sense.
She’s too naive for my liking. I wish there was something I could say to get her to change her ways.
Pronunciation of ï
The pronunciation of the i with two dots is simple enough. It only comes up in a few words, and the diaeresis already explains what its function is when it’s used.
You should pronounce “ï” as a separate letter from the vowel that came before it. This will allow you to make a more natural and separate sound in words like “naïve” (where it appears).
How to Type “i” with Two Dots on Keyboard
It would help to learn how to type “ï” if you ever need it. Different systems have different methods.
For the Windows Operating System:
Hold ALT and type 0239 on the NUMPAD
For the Apple MAC OS:
Press [OPTION]+[u], then i
These methods will allow you to type “ï” on your respective operating system.
Final Thoughts
The i with two dots is not a common letter in English. In fact, it’s not an English letter at all, so it’s best to avoid using it. You will only see it appear in words of French origin, like “naïve.” Even then, it’s best to replace “ï” with “i” when writing in English.
Martin Lassen
Martin holds a Master’s degree in Finance and International Business. He has six years of experience in professional communication with clients, executives, and colleagues. Furthermore, he has teaching experience from Aarhus University. Martin has been featured as an expert in communication and teaching on Forbes and Shopify. Read more about Martin here.
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A diaeresis is a mark placed over a vowel to indicate that the vowel is pronounced in a separate syllable—as in 'naïve' or 'Brontë'. Most of the English-speaking world finds the diaeresis inessential. The New Yorker may be the only publication in America that uses it regularly.
Ï, lowercase ï, is a symbol used in various languages written with the Latin alphabet; it can be read as the letter I with diaeresis, I-umlaut or I-trema.
The two dots is called a “diaeresis”. (It is not related to the “umlaut” found in Germanic languages). Its purpose is to indicate that the vowels are pronounced separately. So, naïve is pronounced “na-eeve”, not “nave”.
In the International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA), a double dot above a letter is used for a centralized vowel, a situation more similar to umlaut than to diaeresis. In other languages it is used for vowel length, nasalization, tone, and various other uses where diaeresis or umlaut was available typographically.
A colon is a punctuation mark consisting of two dots, one placed above the other. It looks like this : Colons are often used to introduce a list, but that's not all they can do! Think of a colon as a flashing sign that points to your text.
In French, the letter "ï" is usually pronounced as a close front unrounded vowel sound, similar to the "ee" sound in "see." It is a high, front, and unrounded vowel. For example, in the French word "naïf," the "ï" is pronounced as the "ee" sound.
iMessages are in blue and text messages are green. iMessages only work between iPhones (and other Apple devices such as iPads). If you are using an iPhone and you send a message to a friend on Android, it will be sent as a SMS message and will be green.
(or ♡). <3. and heart emoji can be used to express love or affection for a person or fondness for some event or content. Like the heart symbol, <3. can stand for the word love or heart, e.g., I <3.
Initially in French and also in Afrikaans, Catalan, Dutch, Galician, Southern Sami, Welsh, and occasionally English, ⟨ï⟩ is used when ⟨i⟩ follows another vowel and indicates hiatus in the pronunciation of such a word.
The small distinguishing mark you see over a lowercase i and a lowercase j is called a tittle—an interesting name that looks like a portmanteau (combination) of tiny and little, and refers to a small point or stroke in writing and printing.
Open a Word doc and choose where you want the umlaut. Press and hold the Alt key and use the numeric keypad to enter 0252 (lowercase) or 0220 (uppercase). Release the Alt key and voila! Your umlaut appears.
Diaeresis (/daɪˈɛrəsɪs, -ˈɪər-/ dy-ERR-ə-siss, -EER-) is a name for the two dots diacritical mark (◌̈) as used to indicate the separation of two distinct vowel letters in adjacent syllables when an instance of diaeresis (or hiatus) occurs, so as to distinguish from a digraph or diphthong.
The dot over the lower case I and J is meant to help these letters look recognizable. In the field of creating legible print, the shapes (or glyphs) placed over letters to help us recognize them, or understand they may be pronounced as a particular sound (such as accent marks) are called diacritical marks.
Mobile Devices. On an iOS or Android device, access umlaut marks by tapping and holding a particular key. For example, tap and hold the uppercase or lowercase O key, then slide your finger over to ö or Ö to use it in texts, emails, and other documents.
The dieresis, le tréma, is a French accent found on only three vowels: ë, ï, and ü. The dieresis usually indicates that the accented vowel must be pronounced distinctly from the vowel that precedes it; in other words, the two vowels are not pronounced as a single sound (like ei) or as a diphthong (like io).
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