Key Points
- Apple's iOS keyboard blocks autocomplete for approximately 100,000 words and phrases across languages
- Grey list includes political terms like 'dictator Trump' and 'sleepy Joe' alongside obscenities
- Hindi keyboard blocks swipe-typing of 'Modi braggart' and 'Rahul is Pappu'
Apple’s iPhone keyboard contains a previously undisclosed multilingual list of words and phrases that its predictive text and swipe-typing features avoid suggesting, according to research published by independent researcher Derik Kauffman on Friday (6 November).
The restrictions cover an estimated 100,000 words, phrases and variations across multiple languages, including political expressions, offensive language and references to sensitive subjects. The findings, documented on Kauffman’s research website Swipeblocked, show how Apple’s keyboard filters certain combinations of words while allowing users to enter them manually.
The list does not prevent iPhone users from typing specific words or phrases. Instead, it restricts how the keyboard’s predictive text and QuickPath swipe-typing features complete or suggest them.
Kauffman’s research identified 4,513 recovered English-language phrases, alongside separate lists for 27 other languages and scripts. The broader estimate of approximately 100,000 entries depends on how words, phrases and their variations are counted.
Most of the identified restrictions concern vulgar or offensive language and references to drugs, sex and violence. However, the findings also include political expressions such as “dictator Trump” and “sleepy Joe”, the latter being a term used by Donald Trump and his supporters to refer to former US President Joe Biden.
Apple has not publicly disclosed the complete list or explained the criteria used to determine which phrases are excluded from keyboard suggestions.
In a response to news agency Reuters, Apple said its keyboard was designed to avoid suggesting potentially inappropriate or offensive language. The company maintained that users could manually enter any words or phrases and override predictive text suggestions. It did not directly address the size or composition of the list or explain the inclusion of particular political expressions.
Political terms across languages
Kauffman’s findings indicate that the restrictions extend beyond English and include politically sensitive phrases in several languages.
Among the English-language expressions identified are “right wing conspiracy”, “Tibetan independence” and “United Ireland”. The research also identifies restrictions involving political slogans, historical references and other expressions that are not necessarily offensive.
In Hindi, the identified phrases include “Modi braggart” and “Rahul is Pappu”, expressions referring to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi, respectively.
The findings also identify restrictions involving a French expression meaning “immigration too high” and a Hebrew phrase referring to “occupied territories”.
The presence of these expressions in the keyboard data does not establish why Apple included them. The company has not provided a detailed explanation of how individual phrases are selected or whether political terms are assessed separately from other potentially sensitive language.
The research also identifies differences in how closely related phrases are handled. For example, certain expressions containing references to sexual content can be entered through swipe-typing, while variations of those expressions encounter restrictions.
Such differences are documented in Kauffman’s published findings, although the research does not establish whether each entry was individually selected or generated through broader filtering patterns.
How Apple’s keyboard list was discovered
Kauffman’s investigation began after he noticed that Apple’s swipe-typing feature handled some everyday expressions differently from similar phrases.
He examined the keyboard’s underlying language data using OpenAI’s Codex and Anthropic’s Claude Code, eventually identifying a mechanism used to exclude certain words and phrases from predictions and swipe-typing.
The research found that Apple stores the restrictions through a system of hashed entries rather than maintaining a conventional, directly readable list of prohibited expressions.
By examining these entries and comparing them with candidate phrases, Kauffman reconstructed portions of the underlying data and published the findings through Swipeblocked.
The published research also includes technical information about the filtering mechanism and recovered phrase lists across different languages.
The findings indicate that Apple’s restrictions can operate at the phrase level rather than applying only to individual words. As a result, a word may be available through swipe-typing in one context but restricted when combined with another word.
The recovered catalogue is not necessarily exhaustive. Some entries may remain unidentified, and the presence of a phrase in the underlying data does not independently establish how it will behave in every keyboard configuration or iOS version.
Reuters reported that it separately tested a selection of the identified phrases on an iPhone and reported difficulties entering them through swipe-typing or obtaining them as predictive text suggestions.
Apple’s predictive text controls
Apple’s predictive text feature suggests words and phrases as users type, while QuickPath allows users to enter text by sliding a finger across the keyboard rather than tapping individual letters.
The features are intended to make text entry faster by predicting likely words and combinations based on language data and typing patterns.
However, the newly documented restrictions show that the keyboard’s suggestions are also subject to filtering rules that are not publicly detailed by Apple.
Users can reject suggestions, manually enter words or disable predictive text through the keyboard settings. These options do not provide a separate facility for reviewing or modifying the identified list of restricted phrases.
Apple has previously faced questions about unexpected behaviour in its language-processing features. In 2025, some iPhone users reported that dictating the word “racist” briefly caused “Trump” to appear on their screens. Apple attributed the problem to an error and said it had been fixed.
By the numbers
Key figures from this story- 100,000
- Approximate words and phrases on Apple's grey list
- Hundreds of millions
- iPhone users affected globally
Kauffman’s publicly available research provides a catalogue of recovered phrases and an explanation of the technical methods used to identify them. The findings cover restrictions affecting predictive text and swipe-typing rather than words that users are prohibited from entering.
Apple has not announced whether it plans to publish the complete list, disclose its selection criteria or introduce additional controls allowing users to customise these restrictions.
Your Questions, Answered
What is Apple's iOS keyboard grey list?
A hidden list of approximately 100,000 words and phrases across multiple languages that Apple's iOS keyboard will not autocomplete or suggest through swipe-typing. Users can still manually type these words, but the keyboard will not offer them as suggestions.
What political terms does Apple's iOS keyboard block?
The grey list includes terms such as 'dictator Trump', 'sleepy Joe', 'right wing conspiracy', 'Tibetan independence' and 'United Ireland'. In Hindi, it blocks 'Modi braggart' and 'Rahul is Pappu'.
Can iPhone users still type blocked words?
Yes. The grey list only affects autocomplete and swipe-typing suggestions. Users can manually type any word or phrase they choose. Apple confirmed users can always override predictive text suggestions.
How was Apple's keyboard grey list discovered?
Researcher Derek Kauffman discovered it in September after noticing swipe-typing issues with certain phrases. He used OpenAI's Codex and Anthropic's Claude Code to locate the list deep within Apple's operating system.
