Checking for a List of Phrases in a Document

Written by Allen Wyatt (last updated October 26, 2024)
This tip applies to Word 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, 2021, and Word in Microsoft 365


Martin recently received, from his company's legal team, a list of phrases that they don't like to see in documents the company creates. For instance, in most cases the phrase "solution will" should be, instead, "solution is intended to." Martin wonders if there is a way to have this new list of phrases checked and flagged automatically in Word, perhaps through the grammar checker.

The grammar checker won't do it, unfortunately. There simply is no way, in Word, to add your own phrases so that the grammar checker can, well, "check" them.

It sounds, though, like you may need two solutions—one that will kick into play as you are composing new documents and another that can be used to check existing documents. The "as you compose" solution is actually quite easy—all you need to do is to use AutoCorrect to automatically change the offending phrases for you.

  1. Display the Word Options dialog box. (In Word 2007 click the Office button and then click Word Options. In Word 2010 or a later version, display the File tab of the ribbon and then click Options.)
  2. Click Proofing at the left side of the dialog box.
  3. Click AutoCorrect Options. Word displays the AutoCorrect dialog box. (See Figure 1.)
  4. Figure 1. The AutoCorrect dialog box.

  5. In the Replace box, enter your offending phrase.
  6. In the With box type the preferred phrase.
  7. Click the Add button.
  8. Repeat steps 4 through 6 for each of the remaining offending phrases.
  9. Click Close to close the dialog box.

Now, as you type in your document, whenever an offending phrase is entered and the space or punctuation mark after that phrase is pressed, Word should automatically replace the phrase with the preferred phrase.

Of course, the AutoCorrect approach won't help with existing documents, nor will it help if blocks of text are copied from other documents and pasted into the current document. In those cases, you need a different approach. The simplest is to use the Find and Replace capabilities of Word to look for an offending phrase and make the determination if you want to replace it with the preferred phrase or not. This can work great if you have only a few phrases you need to correct.

If your list of phrases is considerably longer, you may want to consider using a macro to mark infractions. Here's a simple approach.

Sub ReplacePhrases()
    Dim sBadPhrase(19) As String
    Dim sGoodPhrase(19) As String
    Dim iCount As Integer
    Dim J As Integer

    iCount = 6   ' Set to number of phrases

    sBadPhrase(1) = "first offensive phrase"
    sBadPhrase(2) = "second offensive phrase"
    sBadPhrase(3) = "third offensive phrase"
    sBadPhrase(4) = "fourth offensive phrase"
    sBadPhrase(5) = "fifth offensive phrase"
    sBadPhrase(6) = "sixth offensive phrase"

    sGoodPhrase(1) = "first preferred phrase"
    sGoodPhrase(2) = "second preferred phrase"
    sGoodPhrase(3) = "third preferred phrase"
    sGoodPhrase(4) = "fourth preferred phrase"
    sGoodPhrase(5) = "fifth preferred phrase"
    sGoodPhrase(6) = "sixth preferred phrase"

    For J = 1 to iCount
        With Selection.Find
            .ClearFormatting
            .Replacement.ClearFormatting
            .Text = sBadPhrase(J)
            .Replacement.Text = sGoodPhrase(J)
            .Forward = True
            .Format = False
            .MatchWholeWord = False
            .MatchCase = False
            .MatchWildcards = False
            .Wrap = wdFindContinue
        End With
        Selection.Find.Execute Replace:=wdReplaceAll
    Next J
End Sub

This macro does a mass replacement of the values stored in the sBadPhrase array with the phrases stored in the sGoodPhrase array. All you need to do is to set up the arrays with your phrases and change iCount so that it is equal to the number of phrases you have defined. (If you go above 19 phrases, you'll also need to change the declaration of the two arrays so that they are large enough.)

Note:

If you would like to know how to use the macros described on this page (or on any other page on the WordTips sites), I've prepared a special page that includes helpful information. Click here to open that special page in a new browser tab.

WordTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Word training. (Microsoft Word is the most popular word processing software in the world.) This tip (5140) applies to Microsoft Word 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, 2021, and Word in Microsoft 365.

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. ...

MORE FROM ALLEN

Preserving the Undo List

The undo list can be a lifesaver when working in a macro. Unfortunately, the undo list is not preserved when you run a ...

Discover More

Controlling the Behavior of the Mouse Wheel

The mouse wheel, by default, controls scrolling vertically through your worksheet. If you don't want the wheel to control ...

Discover More

Converting Lists to Text

If you have a numbered list in a document, you might want to convert it to regular, non-dynamic text and not lose the ...

Discover More

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!

More WordTips (ribbon)

Inserting a Copyright Mark

One of the most common symbols that can be added to a document is the copyright mark. This tip examines several ways you ...

Discover More

Adding Quotes

Adding quote marks is normally as simple as typing them from the keyboard. However, if you want to add quote marks around ...

Discover More

Adding Tabs at the Beginning of a Line

Press a tab at the beginning of a paragraph, and Word normally assumes you want to indent the paragraph. If you don't ...

Discover More
Subscribe

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.

What is 3 + 2?

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 ribbon interface (Word 2007 or later)? This site is for you! If you use an earlier version of Word, visit our WordTips site focusing on the menu interface.

Videos
Subscribe

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

(Your e-mail address is not shared with anyone, ever.)

View the most recent newsletter.