How to Check Spelling and Grammar in Microsoft Word

See Microsoft Word: Tips and Tricks for similar articles.

It is important to always check your documents for spelling and grammar mistakes before distribution. Fortunately, Word makes it easy.

This feature works the same in all modern versions of Microsoft Word.

  1. From the Proofing group on the Review tab, select Spelling & Grammar. Spelling & Grammar
  2. Microsoft Word will look for spelling and grammar errors starting from the location of your cursor in the document.
  3. If Word finds a spelling error, a navigation pane similar to the one below will appear: Navigation Pane You then have the following options:
    • Ignore. To leave the text as is in a specific instance, but be notified if Microsoft Word finds the same thing again, click Ignore.
    • Ignore All. To leave the text as is in this and future instances, click Ignore All.
    • Add. Adding a word to your dictionary will prevent Microsoft Word from ever noting this word as being misspelled again.
    • Change. To correct only this instance of the misspelling, click Change.
    • Change All. To correct all instances of the misspelling throughout the document, click Change All.
  4. If Word finds a grammar error, a dialog box similar to the one below will appear: Dialog Box
    • Ignore. To leave the text as is in a specific instance, but be notified if Microsoft Word finds the same thing again, click Ignore.
    • Change. To accept Word's suggested correction, click Change.
    • At the bottom of the pane, you will see an explanation of the grammar error that Word has detected.

A useful feature when checking spelling and grammar is Word's AutoCorrect feature. When Word indicates a word in a document may be misspelled or incorrect, with a squiggle under it, you can right-click the word to see suggestions. If a suggestion is correct, simply select it to replace the word. AutoCorrect

Written by Dave Dunn. Follow Dave on Twitter.

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