> For the complete documentation index, see [llms.txt](https://handbook.musescore.org/llms.txt). Markdown versions of documentation pages are available by appending `.md` to page URLs; this page is available as [Markdown](https://handbook.musescore.org/3/text/lyrics.md). # Lyrics ## Enter a lyrics line ### First line 1. Enter the notes of the melody line; 2. [Select](/3/basics/selecting-elements.md#select-note) the note where you want to start entering lyrics; 3. To enter **lyrics mode**, type Ctrl+L (Mac: Cmd+L); or from the main menu, select **Add -> Text -> Lyrics**; 4. Type a syllable; 5. Use the following options to continue entering lyrics: * **Go to the next syllable**: Press Space (or Ctrl+Right (Mac: Alt+Right)) at the end of a syllable. * **Hyphen** (to connect syllables): Press - at the end of a syllable. * **Go to the previous syllable**: Press Shift+Space (or Ctrl+Left (Mac: Alt+Left)). * **Move left**: Press Left (left arrow). If the cursor is at the beginning of a syllable, it will jump to the previous one. * **Move right**: Press Right (right arrow). If the cursor is at the end of a syllable, it will jump to the next one. * **Move to the syllable below**: Press Down (down arrow). * **Move to the syllable above**: Press Up (up arrow). * **Start new lyrics line**: Press ↵ (Return) at the end of an existing lyrics syllable (*Note*: Don't use the Enter key from the numeric keypad!). 6. To exit **lyrics mode**, press Esc or click outside of the text box. ### Subsequent lines If you want to add another lyrics line to an existing one (e.g. a 2nd or 3rd verse etc.): 1. Choose one of the following options: * [Select](/3/basics/selecting-elements.md#select-note) the note where you want to start the new lyrics line. Enter **lyrics mode** as shown in step 3 ([above](#first-line)). The cursor moves to a new (blank) line. * Enter [text edit mode](/3/text/text-editing.md#enterexit-text-edit-mode) on an existing syllable, go to the end of the syllable and press ↵ (Return). The cursor moves to the next line. 2. Continue entering lyrics from step 4 ([above](#first-line)). **Example**:
Sample lyrics: A-des-te fi-del-es
### Special characters In most cases, lyrics can be [edited](/3/text/text-editing.md) just like normal text. However, special keyboard shortcuts are required to enter the following characters: * **Space character**: Ctrl+Space (Mac: Alt+Space). * **- (hyphen)**: Ctrl+- (Mac: Alt+-). * **\_ (underscore)**: Ctrl+Shift+\_ (Mac: Alt+Shift\_). * **Line feed**: Ctrl+↵ (Mac: Alt+Return) or Enter (from the numeric keypad). ### Verse numbers To number verses, simply type the number (e.g. 1.) and a [space](#special-characters) before the first syllable. MuseScore will automatically align the numbers and first syllable correctly. ### Melisma A **melisma** is a syllable or word that extends over two or more notes. It is indicated by an underline extending from the base of a syllable to the last note of the melisma. The underline is created by positioning the cursor at the end of a syllable and pressing Shift+\_: once for each note in the melisma. See the image below:
Syllable extension line, Melisma
The above lyric was created in the following manner: 1. Type the letters, soul,. 2. At the end of the word, press Shift+\_\_\_. 3. Type the letters To, then press Esc. For non-last syllables to extend, just use additional dashes -, usually only one of them will show (more when the distance between the syllables is large enough), and the syllable will right-align to the first note, similar to last syllables that got notated with a melisma, see above. ### Elision (Lyric) slur / Synalepha Two syllables under a note can be joined with an **elision slur**, also known as a "lyric slur" or "synalepha". For example:
Sample lyric slur under a note
To create the example lyric text, starting with the syllable text "te": 1. Type te; 2. Click on the keyboard icon
Keyboard Icon
in the bottom-left corner of the screen, or press F2 to open the [Special Characters](/3/text/text-editing.md#symbols-and-special-characters) palette; 3. Use one of the following options: * Double-click one of the three elision slurs in the "Common Symbols" tab: "Narrow elision", "Elision", or "Wide elision" (these can be found between the "C Clef" and the "***p***" dynamic—see image below):\\
Elision in the Special Symbols palette
* Double-click the elision slur found after the 7/8 fraction in the "Common Symbols" tab (next to last character in the image above). Depending on the font, add one or more spaces before/after the slur using Ctrl+Space (Mac: Alt+Space). **Note**: Not all fonts include the "undertie" character (U+203F ‿ "undertie", present in "Special Characters" mainly for compatibility with MuseScore 1.x scores). To find out which fonts on your computer support it, see "[fontlist](http://www.fileformat.info/info/unicode/font/fontlist.htm?text=te%20%CD%9C%20A)" (look for any font that shows a tie between "te" and "A" instead of a blank rectangle). 4. Type A. As of 3.6: Ctrl+Alt+- or AltGr+- (Mac: Cmd+Alt+-). ## Edit Lyrics 1. Enter [text edit mode](/3/text/text-editing.md#enterexit-text-edit-mode) on an existing syllable; 2. Use standard [text editing](/3/text/text-editing.md) commands to make changes; 3. Continue entering lyrics (see [above](#first-line)); or exit **lyrics mode** by pressing Esc. ## Copy lyrics to clipboard To copy *all* lyrics to the clipboard: * From the menu bar, select **Tools -> Copy Lyrics to Clipboard**. ## Paste lyrics from clipboard To copy and paste lyrics from a text file (say) into a score: 1. Enter the notes in the score to which the lyrics will be attached. 2. Set up your lyrics in a text file, with appropriate spaces, hyphens, line-breaks etc. 3. Copy the lyrics from the text-file into the clipboard. 4. Select the start note in MuseScore, and press Ctrl+L (Mac: Cmd+L) (step 3 under [Enter lyrics in a score](#enter-a-lyrics-line)). 5. Repeatedly applying [paste](/3/basics/copy-and-paste.md#paste-notes) will enter successive words of the lyrics. You may need to enter melismas and make other corrections as you go along. ## Adjust settings of lyrics To edit selected lyrics object(s) on a score: 1. Select object(s), see [Selection modes](/3/basics/selecting-elements.md). 2. Edit properties in the [Inspector](/3/basics/inspector.md) as required. **Note:** in Musescore 3.6.2, the **Minimum distance** property for lyrics objects is not implemented, see patch file by upx on To edit default setting, edit the style profile, see [https://musescore.org/en/handbook/3/layout-and-formatting#concept2](/3/formatting/layout-and-formatting.md#concept2) and [https://musescore.org/en/handbook/3/text-styles-and-properties](/3/text/text-styles-and-properties.md) * "Style for lyrics objects" **Format→Style→Lyrics** * "Style for text inside staff text" **Format→Style→TextStyles→Staff** * "Style for text inside lyrics odd lines" **Format→Style→TextStyles→Lyrics odd lines** * "Style for text inside lyrics even lines" **Format→Style→TextStyles→Lyrics even lines** Layout settings are culminative ## Adjust the vertical position of lyrics at the same line (same vertical position on a page) All lyrics at the same line (same vertical position on a page) are in the same system (layout concept), see [Layout and formatting](/3/formatting/layout-and-formatting.md#page) chapter. To select them, see [Selection mode : Select All similar](/3/basics/selecting-elements.md#all-similar-selection) chapter. Check **Same system** option in the selection window. To assign one value to all of them, enter a new value in the **X and Y offsets** property in the [Inspector](/3/basics/inspector.md). ## See also * [Text types](/3/text/text-types.md) * [Chord symbol](/3/text/chord-notation-systems.md) ## External links * [How to insert Lyrics](https://musescore.org/en/node/21522) (MuseScore HowTo) * [How to move lyrics](https://musescore.org/en/node/23764) (MuseScore HowTo) * [How to add a block of text to a score](https://musescore.org/en/node/24475) (MuseScore HowTo) * [How to copy lyrics, or lyrics with rhythm](https://musescore.org/en/node/54436) (MuseScore HowTo) * [How to add lyrics in columns](https://musescore.org/en/node/286258) (MuseScore HowTo) * [Video tutorial: MuseScore in Minutes: Lesson 6 - Text, Lyrics and Chords](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8nglDCxzfeA) --- # Agent Instructions This documentation is published with GitBook. GitBook is the documentation platform designed so that both humans and AI agents can read, navigate, and reason over technical content effectively. Learn more at gitbook.com. ## Querying This Documentation If you need additional information that is not directly available in this page, you can query the documentation dynamically by asking a question. Perform an HTTP GET request on the current page URL with the `ask` query parameter, and the optional `goal` query parameter: ``` GET https://handbook.musescore.org/3/text/lyrics.md?ask=&goal= ``` `ask` is the immediate question: it should be specific, self-contained, and written in natural language. `goal` is optional and describes the broader end goal you are ultimately trying to accomplish on behalf of the user. GitBook uses it to tailor the answer towards what is most useful for that goal. The response will contain a direct answer to the question and relevant excerpts and sources from the documentation. Use this mechanism when the answer is not explicitly present in the current page, you need clarification or additional context, or you want to retrieve related documentation sections.