Please Note: This article is written for users of the following Microsoft Word versions: 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, Word in Microsoft 365, and 2021. If you are using an earlier version (Word 2003 or earlier), this tip may not work for you. For a version of this tip written specifically for earlier versions of Word, click here: Configuring Spell Check for Internet Addresses.

Configuring Spell Check for Internet Addresses

Written by Allen Wyatt (last updated November 16, 2024)
This tip applies to Word 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, Word in Microsoft 365, and 2021

It goes without saying that the Internet has taken the world by storm. (You are reading this through your Internet e-mail, right?) While this is a great boon to many people, it can be bothersome to writers. Many spell checkers and grammar checkers don't know quite what to do with Internet addresses, such as URLs and e-mail addresses.

You can instruct the spell check program to ignore anything that looks like an Internet address. To enable this option, follow these steps:

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.)
Click Proofing at the left side of the dialog box. (See Figure 1.)

Figure 1. The Proofing options for the Word Options dialog box.

Make sure the Ignore Internet and File Addresses check box is selected.
Click on OK.

WordTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Word training. (Microsoft Word is the most popular word processing software in the world.) This tip (6039) applies to Microsoft Word 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, Word in Microsoft 365, and 2021. You can find a version of this tip for the older menu interface of Word here: Configuring Spell Check for Internet Addresses.

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...

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