Microsoft Word’s spelling and grammar check is one of the simplest—yet most important—tools in the Office suite. The interface for the tool evolves with each iteration of the software, so today’s tutorial demonstrates how to use Microsoft Word 2016’s spelling and grammar check. This tutorial is for Microsoft Word 2016 running on Windows. Include or Exclude … [Read more...] about How to Use Microsoft Word 2016’s Spelling and Grammar Check (Tutorial)
Microsoft Word
How to Use the Passive Voice Tool in Microsoft Word 2016 (Tutorial)
When Microsoft released Word 2016, the company surprised (and frustrated) many users by removing passive voice from Word’s readability statistics. However, Microsoft has redeemed itself by returning the passive voice tool in a recent software update. In celebration, today’s tutorial shows how to add the passive voice tool to Microsoft Word 2016’s Spelling & Grammar check … [Read more...] about How to Use the Passive Voice Tool in Microsoft Word 2016 (Tutorial)
How to Copy and Paste Microsoft Word Comments into a New Word File (Tutorial)
Have you ever wanted to copy and paste Microsoft Word comments into a new Word file in order to review them separately from the original document? Word doesn’t have an official method for copying and pasting comments; however, today’s tutorial shows the “work-around” method I use to accomplish that task---without having to copy and paste each comment individually. Please … [Read more...] about How to Copy and Paste Microsoft Word Comments into a New Word File (Tutorial)
How to Remove User Names from Existing Track Changes in Microsoft Word (Tutorial)
My previous tutorial “How to Change Your User Name for Track Changes in Microsoft Word 2016 and Word 2013” shows how to change user names for comments and edits created with Track Changes. However, Word doesn’t have a straightforward way to change user names connected to existing comments and edits, so that tutorial only works for new comments and edits. As an alternative, … [Read more...] about How to Remove User Names from Existing Track Changes in Microsoft Word (Tutorial)
How to Find and Replace Special Characters in Microsoft Word (Tutorial)
This tutorial shows you how to find and replace special characters in Microsoft Word by (1) entering special characters directly into the Find and Replace dialog box, (2) selecting special characters from within the Find and Replace dialog box, and (3) using keyboard shortcuts or caret codes. We’ll focus on the preset special characters available through Word’s Symbol … [Read more...] about How to Find and Replace Special Characters in Microsoft Word (Tutorial)
How to Insert Special Characters in Microsoft Word (Tutorial)
This tutorial shows how to insert special characters in Microsoft Word using the Symbol dialog box, keyboard shortcuts, and AutoCorrect. As explained in my previous post, Word includes twenty-seven special characters: twelve text characters, such as the en dash, that don’t appear on traditional keyboards and fifteen formatting characters, such as the nonbreaking hyphen, that … [Read more...] about How to Insert Special Characters in Microsoft Word (Tutorial)
What Are Special Characters in Microsoft Word?
Microsoft Word includes two types of special characters: (1) text characters that don’t appear on standard keyboards and (2) formatting characters for text layout. Today’s post explains all of the special characters in Microsoft Word 2016. Word 2013 and Word 2010 offer similar special character options. Special Text Characters Special text characters are normal characters … [Read more...] about What Are Special Characters in Microsoft Word?
How to Insert Nonbreaking Spaces in Microsoft Word (Tutorial)
This tutorial shows how to insert nonbreaking spaces in Microsoft Word using the Symbol dialog box method and the keyboard shortcut method. Before we start the tutorial, we’ll briefly define nonbreaking spaces and see what they look like compared to regular spaces. This tutorial was written for Microsoft Word 2016 running on Windows. The steps are similar for Word 2013 and … [Read more...] about How to Insert Nonbreaking Spaces in Microsoft Word (Tutorial)
Three Ways to Insert Accent Marks in Microsoft Word (Tutorial)
Accent marks, formally called diacritical marks, are extra marks that appear above and below individual letters. Their usual purpose is to influence pronunciation. Merriam-Webster’s Collegiate Dictionary lists ten common diacritical marks, including the acute accent (ˊ), grave accent (ˋ), and cedilla (¸).1 Today’s tutorial explains three ways to insert accent marks in Microsoft … [Read more...] about Three Ways to Insert Accent Marks in Microsoft Word (Tutorial)
How to Use Track Changes in Microsoft Word (Tutorial)
This tutorial is a basic overview of how to use Track Changes in Microsoft Word. Word’s Track Changes tool helps us edit documents by tracking insertions, deletions, and format changes. The term track changes is commonly used for both editing and commenting, so this tutorial also includes Word’s comment tool. Please note that the images in this tutorial are from Microsoft … [Read more...] about How to Use Track Changes in Microsoft Word (Tutorial)
How to Find and Replace Microsoft Word Formatting (Tutorial)
My clients frequently ask me to edit their formatting. Formatting can include anything from italics and fonts to heading styles. Locating format issues can be difficult with the naked eye (And my eyes aren’t naked; I wear glasses!), so when I’m editing in Microsoft Word, I use the Find and Replace tool to locate individual formats. Today’s tutorial shows you two methods to find … [Read more...] about How to Find and Replace Microsoft Word Formatting (Tutorial)
How to Change Your User Name for Track Changes in Microsoft Word 2016 and Word 2013 (Tutorial)
Have you ever wanted (or needed) to be an incognito editor, a covert reviewer, or a clandestine collaborator? If so, this post is for you—or for your secret identity—because it demonstrates how to change your user name for Track Changes in Microsoft Word 2016 and Word 2013. This tutorial is also available as a YouTube video, which you can watch on my YouTube channel or in the … [Read more...] about How to Change Your User Name for Track Changes in Microsoft Word 2016 and Word 2013 (Tutorial)
How to Use Microsoft Word’s Word Count Tool (Tutorial)
I know what you’re thinking: “What’s there to learn about the Microsoft Word word count tool? The number is right there at the bottom of the screen!” And that is certainly true. Unless you’ve changed your default settings, the count always appears in the status bar below your document. But Word’s word count tool can do more than provide the total word count. It can also give … [Read more...] about How to Use Microsoft Word’s Word Count Tool (Tutorial)
How to Insert Footnotes and Endnotes in Microsoft Word (Tutorial)
Manually inserting individual footnotes and endnotes in Word is relatively straightforward: type a superscript number at the end of the sentence related to the note and then scroll to the bottom of the page, section, or document to type your note's text. But manually inserting notes can get tricky if your document is more than a couple of pages long or has a lot of notes … [Read more...] about How to Insert Footnotes and Endnotes in Microsoft Word (Tutorial)
How to Change the Proofing Language for Microsoft Word Comments (Tutorial)
When you use Microsoft Word’s Track Changes tools to edit someone else’s document, the comment tool automatically inherits the original author’s proofing language along with spelling and grammar check settings. Normally this inheritance isn’t a problem. However, if the author wrote the text in another language and then translated it to English without updating the proofing … [Read more...] about How to Change the Proofing Language for Microsoft Word Comments (Tutorial)
Three Ways to Insert Currency Symbols in Microsoft Word (Tutorial)
Last week’s post covered basic guidelines for formatting money in general writing. This week, we’ll look at three different ways to insert currency symbols in Microsoft Word: the Symbol dialog box, Alt codes, and shortcut keys. To keep things simple, we’ll concentrate on the euro, pound, and cent signs in these examples. Please note that these steps are for Word 2016 and … [Read more...] about Three Ways to Insert Currency Symbols in Microsoft Word (Tutorial)
Four Tips for Using Microsoft Word’s Spelling and Grammar Check Effectively
When you inherit a Word document, the original author's settings can affect the document even when you open it on your own computer. These lingering and potentially unwanted settings may prevent you from receiving a complete spelling and grammar check. Here are four quick tips for using Microsoft Word's spelling and grammar check effectively---even if your document was … [Read more...] about Four Tips for Using Microsoft Word’s Spelling and Grammar Check Effectively
How to Edit Your Custom Dictionary in Microsoft Word (Tutorial)
Microsoft Word's spell-checking capability is quite good. However, it occasionally puts that squiggly red line under something that is spelled correctly. Maybe it's a product, place, or company name. Maybe it's a person's first or last name. Regardless, most of us just right-click and select "Add to Dictionary" if we know we'll be using that word again in the future. But have … [Read more...] about How to Edit Your Custom Dictionary in Microsoft Word (Tutorial)
How to Add Passive Voice to Microsoft Word’s Grammar Check and Readability Statistics (Tutorial)
Last week's post discussed the difference between active voice and passive voice. The steps below explain how to add passive voice to Microsoft Word's grammar check and readability statistics. Update: If you would like to see Microsoft Word’s passive voice feature in action, check out the YouTube video I recorded, which demonstrates the steps outlined in this tutorial. The … [Read more...] about How to Add Passive Voice to Microsoft Word’s Grammar Check and Readability Statistics (Tutorial)
How to Delete Extra Spaces in Microsoft Word Documents (Tutorial)
Many of us over the age of thirty-five endured a high school typing class on a (gasp!) real typewriter. In between nerve-wracking speed tests and paper jams, we were taught to put two spaces after periods in order to make individual sentences easier to identify. Today, the extra space is frowned upon in almost all situations, but those of us who survived an entire semester with … [Read more...] about How to Delete Extra Spaces in Microsoft Word Documents (Tutorial)