Word doc language

Shows how to verify the Language settings for a Word doc

2 minute read

Microsoft Word documents have settings that can override preferences set in the app.

If you’re not expecting this, you can encounter behavior that seems strange. (It’s easy to fix.)

Imagine you’re based in the US. While editing a Word doc, you notice that the word color is underlined with a red squiggle.

When you right-click the word, the shortcut menu suggests using the word colour instead.

In the Word options, you verify that your default proofing language is set to English (United States).

What’s going on?

One possible answer is that your document’s settings are set to values appropriate for a different region.

In this example, the proofing engine is recommending UK preferences over US preferences.

If you run into a situation like this, check the document’s Language settings:

From the ribbon, select the Review tab.
From the Language settings drop-down, choose Language > Set Proofing Language.

(Earlier versions of Word have slightly different choices.)
In the Language settings, verify the Mark selected text as setting.

This is likely set to an unexpected value, such as English (UK) or another region.

To fix the issue, update the language appropriately.

When working with documents created by others, it’s good practice to begin by verifying:

Vital statistics