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: Spell-Checking from the Keyboard.

Spell-Checking from the Keyboard

Written by Allen Wyatt (last updated April 22, 2023)
This tip applies to Word 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, Word in Microsoft 365, and 2021


You may already know that you can right-click on a misspelled word and the resulting Context menu will display suggested corrections for your error. You may not want to use the mouse to activate this feature, however. You might not want to take your hands off the keyboard, which can slow down your editing.

If you are of this ilk, there are two major ways you can display the Context menu for the misspelled word. In both instances, you must make sure the insertion point is somewhere in the misspelled word, then you can do either of the following if you are using Word 2007, Word 2010, or Word 2013:

  • If you have one of the 104-key Windows keyboards, press the "right-click key." This is the key next to the right Ctrl key.
  • Press Shift+F10.

Either of these methods results in the Context menu being displayed. You can then use the arrow keys to select a suggested spelling correction. Pressing Enter then makes the correction. If you don't see a suggestion you like, pressing the Esc key dismisses the Context menu.

In our testing, neither of these methods works in Word 2016. Instead, you can rely on a method that will work regardless of the versions of Word you are using. Simply place the insertion point someplace before the misspelled word and then press Alt+F7. This automatically selects the next misspelled word in the document and displays the Context menu with suggested alternatives.

WordTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Word training. (Microsoft Word is the most popular word processing software in the world.) This tip (10898) 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: Spell-Checking from the Keyboard.

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

Changing Fonts in Multiple Workbooks

If you need to change fonts used in a lot of different workbooks, the task can be daunting, if you need to do it ...

Discover More

Expanding Width of All Tables

If you have a lot of tables in your documents, you might want to change the width of all of them. You can take forever ...

Discover More

Printout Doesn't Match Display for Some Cells

Have you ever noticed that when you print something, there are times that what is printed doesn't exactly match what you ...

Discover More

The First and Last Word on Word! Bestselling For Dummies author Dan Gookin puts his usual fun and friendly candor back to work to show you how to navigate Word 2013. Spend more time working and less time trying to figure it all out! Check out Word 2013 For Dummies today!

More WordTips (ribbon)

Spelling Errors on Internet Addresses

Tired of Word marking Internet addresses as spelling errors? You can turn off this check by applying the steps in this tip.

Discover More

Rechecking Spelling and Grammar

If you ever need to check the spelling or grammar of a document from scratch, it can be confusing knowing the proper ...

Discover More

Spell-Check Won't Work

Having problems making spell check work on a portion of your document? There are two primary causes for such an ...

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 one more than 4?

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.