Monologue modes tell the app how to format your words for different contexts. You can use modes for email, messaging, notes, coding, or any workflow where you want a specific writing style.
How Modes Work
Think of modes as different "personalities" for your text. Email mode can make dictation more polished and structured. Messaging mode can keep it more casual. Coding mode can preserve technical terms and avoid unnecessary formatting.
Choosing the right mode
On Mac, Monologue can use app and website context to choose the right mode when that context is available.
On iPhone and iPad, Apple limits what third-party keyboards can detect about the app you are typing in. If Monologue does not pick the mode you expected, open the Modes menu in the Monologue keyboard and choose the mode manually. For example, choose Email before dictating in Gmail if you want email-style formatting.
You can also select a mode directly when you want to force a specific style for the next dictation.
The Four Built-In Modes
📝 Notes Mode: Note-taking apps, text editors, or unknown apps
Natural, conversational formatting
Smart punctuation that follows speech patterns
Clean, readable structure
💬 Messaging Mode: Slack, Discord, iMessage, Teams, WhatsApp
Keeps the casual, conversational tone
Minimal punctuation (feels more like speaking)
Preserves internet slang and abbreviations
📧 Email Mode: Gmail, Apple Mail, Outlook, other email clients
Professional, business-appropriate tone
Proper salutations and email structure
Formal punctuation and capitalization
💻 Coding Mode: VS Code, Xcode, IntelliJ, other development environments
Preserves technical terminology exactly as spoken
Handles variable naming conventions (camelCase, snake_case)
Minimal formatting interference with code syntax
Editing Existing Modes
Monologue comes with built-in modes for common apps like Email, Messaging, and Documents. You can customize any of these to better fit how you work.
Access Mode Settings
Open Monologue Settings
Open Instructions and Modes
Select a mode from the list (Email, Messaging, Document, etc.)
Add apps to a mode
Click "+" in the Activation apps section and select the app you want to add. You can also add websites where this mode will be activated in the Activation websites section.
Edit formatting instructions
Scroll down to the "Custom instructions" section and edit the text box with your formatting preferences.
Creating New Modes
Need something beyond the built-in modes? You can create your own for specific workflows — like coding, legal documents, creative writing, or anything else that needs its own formatting rules.
Create the mode
Open Monologue Settings
Open Instructions and Modes
Click Create New Mode or the + button
Enter a descriptive name (e.g., "Legal Documents", "Creative Writing")
Set trigger apps
Click "+" in the Activation apps section and select which apps should use this mode. You can add multiple apps that need similar formatting.
Write custom instructions
Add specific formatting rules in the Custom instructions field.
_Example—Legal Documents mode:_ Use formal language with numbered paragraphs. Capitalize legal entity names. Use "shall" instead of "will" for obligations.
_Example—Creative Writing mode:_ Use flowing language with creative punctuation. Format dialogue with quotation marks and paragraph breaks. Don't auto-correct creative words.
Test your new mode
Open one of your activation apps
Record test content using different sentence types
Verify formatting works as expected
Adjust instructions if needed
Auto Enter Feature
When you enable Auto Enter, Monologue automatically presses Enter after transcription — instantly sending your message in that app.
To enable it, edit a specific mode and toggle "Auto Enter" on or off. Great for quick messages or vibe coding.