Check spelling and grammar in word (Windows & Mac)
Author: XiaoyangLast Modified: 2025-03-21
Ensuring your document is free from spelling and grammar errors is essential for maintaining professionalism and clarity. Microsoft Word makes this process effortless with its spell check feature, which automatically monitors your spelling as you type. Errors are highlighted with color-coded underlines: red wavy underline for spelling mistakes, green or blue double-underline for grammar errors.
In this article, we’ll guide you through various methods to check spelling and grammar in Word, tailored for Windows, Mac, and Word 365 users.
Word highlights spelling, grammar, and stylistic issues with an underline automatically, if errors are not underlined, you may need to enable automatic spelling and grammar checking.
Click on File > Options.
In the Word Options dialog box, select Proofing from the left menu.
Under the When correcting spelling and grammar in Word section, ensure the following options are checked.
Click OK to save your settings.
Check spelling and grammar in Word
Microsoft Word provides powerful tools to ensure your documents are error-free and professional. Below, we explore how to check spelling and grammar step by step.
➤ Check spelling and grammar in Word for Windows
● By using Spellings & Grammar
The built-in Spelling & Grammar tool in Word offers a comprehensive way to identify and correct errors. This tool is particularly useful for reviewing long documents as it provides a systematic check of all errors in one go.
Open your document in Word.
Navigate to the Review tab on the and click on Spelling & Grammar.
If there are any spelling or grammatical mistakes in your Word document, a Proofing pane will appear, highlighting the misspelled words with red underlines. See screenshot:
Then, apply an action. To address an error in the pane, you'll find suggested spellings along with three options: Ignore Once, Ignore All, and Add to Dictionary.
To fix the mistake, select the correct spelling from the suggestion menu and click to apply the correct one.
To skip this specific instance of the error, choose Ignore Once.
To skip all instances of this error throughout the document, select Ignore All.
If you want Word to stop marking a particular word as incorrect in the future, click Add to Dictionary.
Once you choose an option for the first error, Word will automatically move to the next one. When all errors have been reviewed, a confirmation message will appear, indicating that the spelling and grammar check is complete.
● By using right-click
For a quicker, on-the-spot correction method, the right-click feature is ideal. This method allows you to fix errors as you type. This method is particularly effective for small edits and quick reviews while writing.
Whenever Word detects a spelling mistake, it underlines the word in red, grammar errors are underlined in blue.
Right-click on the underlined word or phrase to see a list of suggested corrections.
From the context menu, you can:
Select the best correction to replace the error instantly.
Choose Ignore All to leave the word or phrase unchanged.
Click Add to Dictionary to add the term to Word’s dictionary if it’s correct but unrecognized.
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Microsoft Editor in Word for Microsoft 365 analyzes your document and provides suggestions to improve spelling, grammar, and style. It helps refine your writing by suggesting more concise sentences, simpler word choices, or adjustments to match a more formal tone.
Click Review > Editor to open the Editor pane on the right side of the window. All suggestions for spelling, grammar, and stylistic improvements will be categorized (e.g., spelling, grammar, clarity, conciseness) in the pane. See screenshot:
Click on each suggestion in the Editor pane to review it. Accept or ignore the suggestion by selecting the appropriate option. Here, I will demonstrate how to fix the spelling error as below demo shown:
Here also are three options for handling mistakes—choose the one that best fits your needs.
Then, you can review the grammar and refinements one by one, choosing to accept or ignore them as needed.
Tip: Editor Runs Even When Closed
Even when the Editor pane is closed, Microsoft Editor continues working in the background to enhance your writing. As you type, it identifies spelling, grammar, and stylistic issues, ensuring your document remains polished.
Right-click the underlined text to see the suggestion, and select to apply the correction. Use context menu to:
Options for the User:
Add to Dictionary: Add the word to the dictionary if it is correct and should not be flagged in the future.
Ignore All: Ignore the misspelling in this instance and all other instances in the document.
Change All: Automatically replace all occurrences of the misspelled word with the selected correction.
Add to AutoCorrect: Automatically replace the misspelled word with the correct one in the future.
Additional Features:
Read Aloud: Hear the text spoken aloud.
AutoCorrect Options: Customize how Word handles similar issues in the future.
➤ Check spelling and grammar in word for Mac
Microsoft Word for Mac provides intuitive tools to check for spelling and grammar issues:
Open your Word document. Navigate to the Review, and then click Spelling and Grammar.
A dialog box will appear, presenting detected errors along with suggestions for correction. For each error, you can:
Ignore Once: Ignore this spelling error only this time.
Ignore All: Ignore all occurrences of this spelling error.
Add: Add to the dictionary so it will no longer be marked as an error in the future.
Change: Correct the spelling error based on the suggestions provided.
Change All: Correct all occurrences of the text in the document.
AutoCorrect: Automatically correct the spelling error to the appropriate form.
Once you select an option for the first error, Word will automatically proceed to the next one. After all errors have been reviewed, a confirmation message will appear, notifying you that the spelling and grammar check is complete.
Tip: You can also right-click on underlined text to access quick suggestions, including spelling and grammar corrections, options to select the correction, ignore the error, or the ability to add the word to your custom dictionary for future use.
Note: Microsoft Word's spelling and grammar check is powerful but has limitations due to its reliance on predefined rules. These limitations may lead to some specific spelling or grammar errors not being accurately detected, especially when dealing with technical terms, non-standard expressions, complex sentence structures, or variations in language usage. To ensure accuracy, combine it with manual proofreading or advanced language tools.
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After installing Kutools for Word, click Kutools AI > AI Proofread to open the Real-time Assistant pane. The AI Proofread feature will then automatically check and proofread your document, and once it’s done, all suggested updates will be listed in the Real-time Assistant pane. See screenshot:
Click on any error in the pane to highlight the corresponding text in the document. You can then click Accept to apply the correction or Dismiss to ignore it. Repeat for any remaining errors as needed.
Tip: If you’re unsatisfied with the current proofing, click Recheck to run another proofread on the document.
Hide spelling and grammar errors
Microsoft Word's spelling and grammar tools are useful but can be distracting. Hiding underlines is ideal for presentations, sharing documents, or drafting with intentional non-standard language like creative writing or technical jargon. This ensures a clean appearance and uninterrupted focus. Fortunately, Word allows you hide spelling and grammar errors, ensuring the underlines won't appear on any computer.
Click File > Options to go to the Word Options dialog box. In the dialog box, do the following operations:
Click Proofing from left pane.
Check the boxes for Hide spelling errors in this document only and Hide grammar errors in this document only.
Click OK to save your changes.
The lines in the document will be hidden.
In summary, whether in Word for Windows, Word 365, or Word for Mac, users can proofread texts through built-in spelling and grammar checkers, which are simple to operate and suitable for most basic proofreading needs. Kutools AI Proofread provides a smarter way to proofread, using AI technology to improve proofreading quality, especially for users who have higher requirements for language accuracy and expression.If you're interested in exploring more Word tips and tricks, our website offers hundreds of tutorials.
Features
Word Built-in Proofing Tools
Kutools AI Proofread feature
Scope of Proofreading
Primarily for basic spelling and grammar checks
In addition to basic checks, emphasizes context understanding and style suggestions
Integration
Seamless integration with the Office suite, familiar operation
Requires separate installation as an add-in or subscription service
Handling Complex Sentences
Limited understanding of complex contexts and expressions
Utilizes AI, offering superior grammar detection and contextual analysis
Applicable Scenarios
Suitable for daily document editing and basic proofreading
Ideal for professional writing and higher text quality demands
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