This may seem like a simple or even obvious post. But, I have friends who have recently switched to the Mac and they don’t always know what the icons represent in the menus for keyboard shortcuts. I did some searching and couldn’t really find anybody explaining what the icons represent. I thought that was a bit odd so I wanted to get something out there for those few Mac newbies (or maybe even the veterans that still don’t know).
The icons I’m talking about look like this: Mac OS X Keyboard Shortcut Icons 
Now, I’ll explain each quickly:
Mac OS X Apple-Command Key Icon -This is the Apple or Command key icon. It’s the only key that actually has the icon right on it (at least on newer Mac keyboards). It’s usually referred to as the Command key, or for short, “cmd”.
Mac OS X Alt-Option key Icon- This is the Alt or Option key icon. Most keyboard shortcuts reference it as Option instead of Alt though. The common abbreviation is simply “opt”.
Mac OS X Control Key Icon- This is the Control key icon. This key is used widely on PC and Mac, so most people should know the key. It’s also the key that is used in most shortcuts on Windows computers in place of the Command key on the Mac (Control+C on Windows equals Command+C for copy on the Mac) . It’s common abbreviation is “ctl”.
Mac OS X Shift Key Icon- And finally, the Shift key icon. Second to the Command key, this one is also pretty obvious. It’s rarely ever abbreviated in shortcuts.
UPDATE : The esc key modifier looks like this. 
April 15, 2008
Some keys are far from obvious even for expert users.
Apple don’t seem to have a font character for the Esc key. So when you need to type Esc, the command in the menu shows up something like the symbol for male gone wrong (see the Force Quit option in the Apple menu).
I only noticed this when I wanted to try the Complete option in TextEdit (in the Edit menu) and wondered what on earth that key was supposed to be. It’s the Esc key.
I’ve also found both Mac and PC newbies have problems with the Tab key (left pointing arrow running into a wall) – even people who used to use typewriters don’t know what you’re talking about – which makes hitting Alt/Option-Tab a hassle to explain.
Scott
April 16, 2008
A complete list of all mac os x keyboard shortcuts can be found here:
http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=75459
April 16, 2008
a complete list of all keyboard symbols can be found here:
http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?path=Mac/10.5/en/cdb_symbs.html
April 16, 2008
Thanks for the links Jeff
April 29, 2008
i want to know about all mathmatical symbols in excel and word.
May 22, 2008
Is there a font that contains the Mac Keyboard Symbols? If so what font? If not is there a combination of keys that will input them into a text editor for writing documentation?
August 19, 2008
A complete list of Apple Keyboard Symbols can be found here as a free downloadable pdf:
http://www.osxkeyboardshortcuts.com/keyboard-symbols.html
And a free copy of Microsoft Office 2008 Mac OS X Keyboard Shortcuts ebook can be downloaded here:
http://www.osxkeyboardshortcuts.com/downloads.html
August 21, 2008
@Dean -
Very nice site. thanks for the links
October 17, 2009
I’m a recent Mac convert so powering up my new iMac, installing software and working with my photographs was a wee bit challenging but very enjoyable. I wanted to say thank you for describing which symbols are associated with which keyboard key. For some this may seem a small thing but for a person like myself it is a HUGE help and reduces my frustration level in a big way.
Again, thank you,
Blair
December 18, 2009
Obvious? Are you kidding?! I’ve been glued to Macs for almost 30 years, and it took this article to finally, FINALLY show me what some of these crazy symbols mean. I don’t think they are obvious (or intuitive) at all. And BTW the new ‘escape’ symbol looks an AWFUL LOT like ‘power’ to me. Thanks for the info!
January 10, 2010
I finally wrote the symbol equivalents on my keyboard after years of frustration in trying to remember which was control & which was option. Now my newly-Mac brother can have this easy reference. Thanks!
February 2, 2010
Thanks for the info. I really appreciate it!
February 22, 2010
Thanks for the info!
Curtis
March 14, 2010
Thank you very much – I kept seeing the ESC symbol on shortcuts, but had to give up on trying it when I couldn’t find it anywhere on the keyboard.
I really can’t believe a genuine Apple keyboard does not actually show the symbols for ESC or # !!!!
(in case you’re also looking, # hash is ALT-3)
I thought Macs were supposed to be user friendly ?