Just add -f to your say command followed by the location of a file. The steps above work if you have just a few words you’d like spoken, but what if you’re dealing with an entire document? In this case, the say command can read from an input text file using the -f option. Note that if you’re using the say command with any modifiers, you should put your text in parentheses. Head back to Terminal and once again type say, but this time follow it with the modifier -v, the name of your selected voice, and then the desired text. In our example, we’ll use the Australian female voice “Karen.” When you do, install it and note its name. But with a wide selection from which to choose, everyone should be able to find a voice or two they like. Some voices are very good and surprisingly natural sounding, some are odd and funny, and still others are just plain bad.

To sample voices before installing them, highlight one and press the Play button at the bottom of the Customize window. The default installed voices are available in the drop-down menu, but you can download and install others via the Customize option. There are dozens of male and female voices from which to choose you can find a complete list in System Preferences > Dictation & Speech > Text to Speech > System Voice. The default voice in OS X is the male voice “Alex,” but you can also use one of a number of different voices by entering a modifier to your say command. If your Mac’s speakers are turned up, you’ll hear a familiar computerized voice speak the designated phrase. In our example, we’ll have Terminal say “Hello Jim:” say Hello Jim To use speech in Terminal, open a new Terminal window and type say followed by a space and your desired word or phrase, and then press the Return key.

While the Mac’s speech quality and capabilities have increased greatly since then, there’s still an old school way to make your Mac talk: the Terminal. How to Make Your Mac Talk Using the Say Command in TerminalĮver since the introduction of the first Macintosh computer in 1984, text-to-speech has been a major feature of the platform.

Mac talk to text