Updating the Spelling Exclusion List Automatically with WordBasic

If you find yourself updating the spelling exclusion list quite a bit, it can be a bother to always load the file, add the word, and then resave and close the file. When you are using custom dictionaries, Word allows you to add a word to them by a click of a button. There is no such simple approach, however, when it comes to the exclude list.

The following macro will allow you to quickly add a word to the exclude list. You can assign this macro to a button on the toolbar, and then you can update the list by simply highlighting a word and then clicking on the button:

Sub MAIN
    OldDir$ = DefaultDir$(0)
    AddWord$ = RTrim$(Selection$())
    AddWord$ = LTrim$(AddWord$)
    ChDefaultDir \
        "C:\Program Files\Common Files\Microsoft Shared\Proof\", 0
    ' Note that the file name in the next line should be changed so it
    ' reflects the proper exclude file name for your system
    FileOpen .Name = "Mssp2_en.exc", .ConfirmConversions = 0, \
        .ReadOnly = 0, .AddToMru = 0, .PasswordDoc = "", \
        .PasswordDot = "", .Revert = 0, .WritePasswordDoc = "", \
        .WritePasswordDot = ""
    Insert AddWord$
    InsertPara
    FileClose 1
    ChDefaultDir OldDir$, 0
End Sub

This macro "cleans up" the selected word in your document and then adds it to the beginning of the exclude file. You will see a quick flash on your screen as the exclude file is loaded, modified, and then closed, but the word is then available in the exclude file for when you use Word in the future.

You should make sure that you change the name of the file being used for the exclude file. The name of the file can vary from system to system.