If you can’t hear your Mac speak
If your Mac doesn’t speak, you may not have selected anything for it to speak, or the volume might be turned down. Here are some solutions to try:
To hear text that you selected, on your Mac, choose Apple menu
> System Preferences, click Accessibility, click Speech, then select “Speak selected text when the key is pressed.”To hear alert messages, on your Mac, choose Apple menu > System Preferences, click Accessibility, click Speech, then select “Enable announcements.”
Make sure the output volume is turned up. On your Mac, choose Apple menu > System Preferences, click Sound, then click Output.
If you use VoiceOver, make sure it’s on. Press Command-F5. If you don’t hear the VoiceOver greeting, press Command-F5 again. If you still don’t hear the greeting, check the volume settings. If you’re using a portable Mac, you may need to press Fn-Command-F5.
If you’re using an app that speaks to you, check the app’s preferences to see if you need to select an option to hear the app’s messages.