# How to dictate prompts to Claude Code, Cursor and Codex · ZenVoice

Source: https://getzenvoice.com/blog/dictate-prompts-claude-code-cursor

> Prompts for coding agents are prose, and prose is faster to say than type. How to dictate them on a Mac without mangled file names or commands.

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# How to dictate prompts to Claude Code, Cursor and Codex

2 October 2026

Most of what developers type into Claude Code, Cursor or Codex isn't code. It's an explanation: what to change, why, and where. That's exactly the kind of writing that's faster to say.

## The two problems

-   File and type names come out as ordinary words: “app delegate dot swift” instead of AppDelegate.swift, and the agent can't find it.
-   In a terminal, dictation tools “fix” commands: flags lose their dashes and paths gain capitals.

## How ZenVoice handles them

-   In editors and agent prompts, ZenVoice reads the file names in your project (never the files) and spells them as they are on disk.
-   In terminals, what you say is typed exactly: “git push dash dash force-with-lease origin main” becomes git push --force-with-lease origin main.
-   Your thinking out loud becomes a clean paragraph, with the ums gone.

## A good habit

Say the goal first, then the files, then the constraints: “Add a retry to the upload in UploadClient.swift. Keep the existing timeout. Don't touch the tests.” Short sentences dictate cleanly, and agents follow them better too. More in [ZenVoice for developers](https://getzenvoice.com/for/developers).

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-   [The best Wispr Flow alternatives for Mac in 2026](https://getzenvoice.com/blog/best-wispr-flow-alternatives)
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-   [Private dictation on Mac: apps that never upload your voice](https://getzenvoice.com/blog/best-private-dictation-apps-mac)