Word Freezes when Updating Styles

Written by Allen Wyatt (last updated June 25, 2022)
This tip applies to Word 97, 2000, 2002, and 2003

Michael wrote about a problem he was having with updating styles in a Word document. It seems that whenever he attaches a template to a document, and then selects Automatically Update Document Styles on the Templates and Add-Ins dialog box, Word locks up and he needs to restart the program.

Most likely, this is caused by one or more corrupt styles in a template. If the problem occurs only when attaching a particular template, then the problem is likely with that particular template. If the problem occurs regardless of which template you attach, then the problem is most likely with the Normal template.

To correct the problem, try opening the template file directly and using Save As to save it to a new template file. If that doesn't work, then you will need to create the template from scratch. Don't try to copy styles from the old template to the new one, as that may end up transferring some of the corruption you want to leave behind.

WordTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Word training. (Microsoft Word is the most popular word processing software in the world.) This tip (3450) applies to Microsoft Word 97, 2000, 2002, and 2003.

Author Bio

Allen Wyatt

With more than 50 non-fiction books and numerous magazine articles to his credit, Allen Wyatt is an internationally recognized author. He is president of Sharon Parq Associates, a computer and publishing services company. Learn more about Allen...

MORE FROM ALLEN

Understanding Paragraph Alignment

One of the most basic ways to align paragraphs is to set the alignment used for the text in the paragraph. Word provides ...

Discover More

Month for the Nth Sunday

Doing math with dates is quite easy in Excel. As this tip illustrates, this fact makes it easy to figure out the Nth ...

Discover More

Sorting Text

Word makes it easy to sort the information that is contained in your document. Here's how to accomplish this.

Discover More

Discover the Power of Microsoft Office This beginner-friendly guide reveals the expert tips and strategies you need to skyrocket your productivity and use Office 365 like a pro. Mastering software like Word, Excel, and PowerPoint is essential to be more efficient and advance your career. Simple lessons guide you through every step, providing the knowledge you need to get started. Check out Microsoft Office 365 For Beginners today!

More WordTips (menu)

Can't Select Style Instances

Using the Styles and Formatting task pane, Word allows you to select all instances of a given style in your document. ...

Discover More

Searching for Styles

If you use styles to format your text, you can later search for words and phrases that are formatted using various ...

Discover More

Losing All Formatting in a Document

Have you ever made a formatting change to a couple of characters or to a paragraph, only to see those changes affect text ...

Discover More

FREE SERVICE: Get tips like this every week in WordTips, a free productivity newsletter. Enter your address and click "Subscribe."

View most recent newsletter.

Comments

If you would like to add an image to your comment (not an avatar, but an image to help in making the point of your comment), include the characters [{fig}] (all 7 characters, in the sequence shown) in your comment text. You’ll be prompted to upload your image when you submit the comment. Maximum image size is 6Mpixels. Images larger than 600px wide or 1000px tall will be reduced. Up to three images may be included in a comment. All images are subject to review. Commenting privileges may be curtailed if inappropriate images are posted.

Notify me about new comments ONLY FOR THIS TIP

Notify me about new comments ANYWHERE ON THIS SITE

Hide my email address

What is nine minus 5?

There are currently no comments for this tip. (Be the first to leave your comment—just use the simple form above!)

This Site

Got a version of Word that uses the menu interface (Word 97, Word 2000, Word 2002, or Word 2003)? This site is for you! If you use a later version of Word, visit our WordTips site focusing on the ribbon interface.