Cannot Add Words to Dictionary

This fixed the issue I was having, thank you!

I have a similar issue. I am using the word "witch" in a story, and Word keeps insisting the word should be "which" and gives me a blue grammar underline. I've right clicked and selected "ignore " but when I make ANY adjustments in the sentence, I get the blue grammar underline. again. Anything I can do make it stop?
Thank you

Microsoft support didn’t know this! Thank you!

You're amazing! Thanks a lot

Finally I found the solution to the probelm I was having with Word

I found this VB tidbit!

https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/office/vba/api/Word.Dictionaries.ActiveCustomDictionary

I ran it in VB in Word and it created a "home.dic"

For some reason (probably the path) it would not let me add words to the Home.dic, BUT it allowed me to CREATE a new custom dictionary which I made the default! FINALLY!

(see Figure 1 below)

Word365 and Word2016 use RoamingCustom.dic which should always be present and cannot be removed from the list of custom dictionaries. It may be that access to your profile in the cloud is not available. Google RoamingCustom.dic to find solutions to your problem.

I even reinstalled Office 365 to no avail.
(see Figure 1 below)

I appreciate the detailed reply. I restored a previous CUSTOM.DIC to no avail.
It did have the # in it so I deleted that.
I even renamed it in Explorer and created a new CUSTOM.DIC file but nothing shows up in the dialog box.

Would reinstalling Office 365 help? I tried to repair it.

Kenneth,
If you click Add you should see a list of custom dictionaries in the folder C:\Users\username\Appdata\Roaming\Microsoft\UProof. If the file CUSTOM.DIC is present then select it and click Open.

If this doesn’t work then look inside the file with a text editor and check that the file does not start with the # character followed by LID 1033 or similar in which case the file is specific to the language 1033 (which happens to be US English). The best approach in this case is to rename the file to something like UScustom.DIC and use a text editor to create a new blank CUSTOM.DIC file.

If the file CUSTOM.DIC is not present in the folder then create an empty file of that name with a text editor.

The above is for Word2007 and 2010. Word 2016 works a little differently but for compatibility it will more or less accept custom dictionaries from earlier versions but adds some twists of its own. Custom dictionaries for languages are not stored in the UProof folder but are in language specific folders in files that do not have the # LID prefix. Also W2016 has introduced a file RoamingCustom.dic. The result is that the same document may spell check differently between 2010 and 2016.

I have NO dictionaries at all in the dialog box but do not see how to add one. Did you say how to?

If you have more dictionaries, just change the CUSTOM.DIC to default.

great tips

Thank you for solving my greying out of "add to dictionary" Great! regards, Bruce

Thank you for this 'add to dictionary' info'. I was warned that if I removed the current default dictionary it would remove it from other Microsoft programmes. First few times I didn't because I always back off from a warning but of course the 'Add to dictionary' setting didn't change. You could give the information for people like me that they must select the Custom.dic as default and then uncheck the other choices. Never assume a ludite will do what you take for granted. It worked in the end though so I am grateful for that. Steve

Thanks for this - I had to change the dictionary back to Custom.dic from roamingcustom.dic - all sorted now. Thanks.

Thank you for your time and help!

excellent. not ticking all languages was the issue.


Thanks....

Add to dictionary enabled now, thanks

I had a similar problem, but sorted it out in a slightly different way. Somehow a file RoamingCustom.dic cropped in as the default dictionary and it seems I did not have rights to edit it. Changing the Default back to CUSTOM.DIC solved the issue.

Thanks Allen.

Allen, thank you SO much for this simple how-to! It was really bothering me that I couldn't simply add a word because it didn't show as an option. You rock! x)

Thank you for the tip. I can now add new words to my dictionary!

Hello!
This issue is driving me mad!
I continually use 'horsemen', 'horseman',
'gentlemen', 'gentleman', amongst other words I prefer. However, Word underlines my choices and suggests for example 'equestrians'. i do not want Word's suggestions. I have added my words to the dictionary, I have optioned to 'ignore the rule', over and over again but still my words are underlined.
Would you please suggest a viable solution, Thank you.

Thank you! This was explained clearly and as others have mentioned, was also driving me bonkers.

Brilliant! This has also been driving me around the bend. Lots of good Karma for you:) Thanks.

Thank you for the tip. I can now add new words to my dictionary!

thanks, finally solved this annoying problem

Thanks for the help this is a great website.

Thanks Problem Solved.

Thank you! My client (who should never be allowed to touch a computer) managed to mess up the dictionary settings, and it's been the bane of my existence trying to figure out what he did to it. This advice helped tremendously.

Clearly described and effective solution for Word 2016. Many thanks for it.

Word 2010 kept telling me the word "reigning" didn't exist, and wouldn't allow me to add it to the dictionary... until I followed your tutorial. Thanks!

Finally! Apparently I changed the Language drop-down list to English at some point and the option to "add to dictionary" grayed-out since then.

Thank you!

DIDN'T EVEN MAKE A DIFFERANCE FOR ME!

Many thanks! That was bugging me

Worked well, thank you ;)

This worked, for me but I did a few things differently I went in to spell check to the word I wanted to add then, selected options. After that I selected Custom Dictionary, but this didn't work so I went to Dictionaries(which is beside Custom) I selected all of the dictionaries and it let me then add new words!!!!!!!

Thanks for the help! ;)

I started working for a hospital that uses templates. Every template is different. Some have a red line under every word, although correctly spelled. Some let you add words to spell check and some don't. Some even let you add words at the first half of the report and not in the lower half. Some see my autocorrect that I have added to other templates, and some do not. How to remedy this so I can work faster?

I use Word 2007. I'm writing a series of novels and want Spell Check to stop flagging the unusual names of certain characters--not merely to Ignore All in one document.

This is obviously *not* a case of the dictionary setting itself to French (which sometimes happens inexplicably, & I fix it).

I went to Word Options, Custom Dictionary, Dictionary List, and Edit Word List. I typed in a name. The "Add" button was grayed out.

I see others have a similar problem with actual words the Dictionary doesn't include. This needs to be addressed in this Help topic!

I just now lost the ability to "add" words when spellchecking docs... it always appeared as the third option after ignore once, ignore, and then it said add, but I must have somehow deleted it..... I use the same words over and over in my medical dictionary, and now they come up in every single document I type all day long and I am wasting so much time having to spell check and ignore them. HELP !!!!

Adding the Custom.dic did the trick, Thanks!! It was really bugging me not being able to add new words or names.

I cannot understand the suggestion that the word to be added should match the language. In my old set-up of Win7 Ultimate and Word 2007 I could add anything. I've even added wrong spellings by carelessness. This fault seems to crept in after an update. None of the ideas here, nor others elsewhere, have worked for me.

Thank you! This has been driving me mad for months!

I have read all the tips above: I still cannot add the word 'carer' to the custom dictionary. I know several people who have carers - it is an accepted word today. I can click "add word" until I type the 'r' on the end of 'carer' when it becomes greyed out. I use English UK as my language for docs but have checked'all languages' on the proofing page. If I right-click the word I do not have the option to 'add to dictionary'

Hi Dizlem, Your suggestion of making the Custom.DIC the default is what fixed my "Add to Dictionary" to become active. Thanks!!!


Dizlem 23 Dec 2014, 10:45
This also resolves the issue:

FILE > OPTIONS > PROOFING > CUSTOM DICTIONARIES button >
set CUSTOM.DIC to be default

I followed the steps mentioned above and that problem was solved.

Hi CaSondra

Go to 'Word Options'>Proofing> there should be a 'Custom Dictionaries' Button. Click on that and it will show the text box with the Custom.dic (default) shown. Within the text box there should be an 'Edit Word List' button. Click on that and you can 'Add' words such as pH with no problem.

I tried it to make sure that it works for me.

Hey K.vee,

You can add your own words to this dictionary which means that the setting will always be there.

Thank you so very much. This was a great help for me.

I am trying desperately to add the word "pH" to the dictionary (customer or regular). Now, it either highlights it or changes it to PH. This is driving me insane!

Apparently MS Word only will allow addition of words three characters or more into any dictionary. I also tried adding a space to either side, no such luck. Any ideas?

I'm a scientist; pH is used A LOT!

Thank you, AWyatt. Any way to fix the grammar checker?

I should add that there I have found numerous other supposed "errors" that are surely spelling, not grammar. One recent example: no such words as "tine" or "tines" are believed to exist, and Add to Dictionary is grayed out. Yet a fork has tines...

Elizabeth,

The error for possessive vs. plural is done by the grammar checker, not by the spelling checker. That's why you cannot add it to the dictionary (and the option is grayed out).

-Allen

I suspect that whoever compiled the standard dictionary and grammar rules made some arbitrary decisions that are incorrect. That individual or group is so self-assured that they decided to make their errors very difficult to override.

For example, I often use contractions. Today I'm writing about a certain county's laws. Spellcheck insists that I should write "counties" instead. "Counties" is plural; I'm using a possessive. Spellcheck is wrong and I am right, but "Add to Dictionary" is grayed out. Spellcheck is determined to enforce its error!

This also resolves the issue:

FILE > OPTIONS > PROOFING > CUSTOM DICTIONARIES button >
set CUSTOM.DIC to be default

I'm afraid your suggestion was no help to me. Using Word 10 for proof correction I always select the correct proofing language and yet the option to add words to the dictionary is frequently grayed out.

None of these worked for me either. I also have Win 7 pro as OS.

Thank you so much! This was exactly the solution I needed!

It didn't work for me until I made CUSTOM.DIC my default selection

Hi Allen,

I still have "Add to Dictionary"grayed out. This is despite Word 2007 already having the Dictionary option set as suggested. My system has WIN 7 professional OS.

What else is needed?

Hi Allen,

I've two points to make here.

1) MS Word sometimes marks even grammatically correct words as wrong!

2) MS Word also provides only the 'Ignore once' option in many such cases, apart form graying out the 'Add to Dictionary' option.

Now, please suggest a tip to retain the 'Ignore All' option permanently to help in all issues.

My next question is when the custom dictionary is in place, how the regular grammar issues are taken care of?