Written by Allen Wyatt (last updated November 18, 2023)
This tip applies to Word 97, 2000, 2002, and 2003
Spell check is flagging normal words in Linda's document, such as "there", "form", and "were". Even more oddly, she cannot click Ignore All to accept the words. Instead she must click Ignore once for each occurrence. She tried adding the words to the exclusion dictionary, but that didn't work, so Linda is looking for ideas on what to try next.
There are a couple of other things you can check. First of all, you should check to make sure that the language settings are correct for your document. If, for instance, the document contains some words marked as non-English, then those words would be checked by Word using a non-English dictionary, which might result in them being flagged.
The next thing to do is to check your dictionaries—custom and exclusion—and make sure that these common words do not appear in either of them. Other WordTips explain how to check the contents of dictionaries.
Speaking of dictionaries, you may want to check to make sure you are using the dictionary that came with Word, rather than some other dictionary. If the dictionary has changed, then it is very possible for the words to be marked as incorrect.
WordTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Word training. (Microsoft Word is the most popular word processing software in the world.) This tip (10750) applies to Microsoft Word 97, 2000, 2002, and 2003.
Do More in Less Time! An easy-to-understand guide to the more advanced features available in the Microsoft 365 version of Word. Enhance the quality of your documents and boost productivity in any field with this in-depth resource. Complete your Word-related tasks more efficiently as you unlock lesser-known tools and learn to quickly access the features you need. Check out Microsoft 365 Word For Professionals For Dummies today!
Having problems making spell check work on a portion of your document? There are two primary causes for such an ...
Discover MoreThere are times when you need to repeat a word in a document, but doing so triggers an "error reaction" from Word's ...
Discover MoreProper nouns (such as the names of people) are routinely marked as incorrect by Word's spell checker. If you are tired of ...
Discover MoreFREE SERVICE: Get tips like this every week in WordTips, a free productivity newsletter. Enter your address and click "Subscribe."
2026-04-21 12:47:58
Barbie
Is it the spell check flagging these words, or the grammar check wondering if she meant "their," "from," and "where"? (These are easy to mistype even if you know the correct usage.) Grammar errors do not offer an "Ignore All" option, so this seems likely. (There should, however, be a choice to "Stop checking for this issue," if the suggested correction is frequently in error and you trust your own proofreading.)
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.
Visit the WordTips channel on YouTube
FREE SERVICE: Get tips like this every week in WordTips, a free productivity newsletter. Enter your address and click "Subscribe."
Copyright © 2026 Sharon Parq Associates, Inc.
Comments