Turning Off the Automatic Help that Word Offers

Written by Allen Wyatt (last updated January 29, 2024)
This tip applies to Word 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, and 2021


As David types, Word pops up what he considers as efficiency-destroying and very unhelpful help menus in the middle of his work. If he's editing, he knows there are temporary spelling errors, etc. He doesn't want Word to tell him as he is typing. David wonders how to turn off all this help that Word wants to provide so he can simply focus on his writing.

Word provides lots of what Microsoft considers "helpful" tools that are actively running whenever you are using the program. How much these tools intrude in your work can be controlled by using the Word Options dialog box. How you display the dialog box depends on the version of Word you are using:

  • If you are using Word 2007, click the Office button and then click Word Options.
  • If you are using Word 2010 or a later version, display the File tab of the ribbon and then click Options. (See Figure 1.)
  • Figure 1. The General tab of the Word Options dialog box.

Note that each tab on in the dialog box can contain settings that control what you might consider intrusive tools. For instance, on the General tab of the dialog box, near the top, there is a Show Mini Toolbar on Selection option. You'll probably want to turn this off, as with it on, Word displays a, well, "mini toolbar" near whatever you have selected in your document.

Similar settings are available on other tabs. I suspect, for instance, that since you mentioned how Word notifies you about spelling errors that you'll want to display the Proofing tab of the dialog box. (See Figure 2.)

Figure 2. The Proofing tab of the Word Options dialog box.

At a minimum on this tab you'll want to clear the checkbox next to two options: Check Spelling As You Type and Mark Grammar Errors As You Type.

Any of these changes you make are made immediately upon closing the Word Options dialog box. You will, again, want to carefully consider all of the options available on all tabs of the Word Options dialog box. Doing so will allow you to make sure that Word behaves as you want it to behave, without surprises or interruptions.

If you are using Word on a device that relies on a software keyboard (such as a touch-screen computer or tablet), then there is one other place you'll want to make some changes. This time, however, the changes are within Windows 10, not within Word itself. Follow these steps:

  1. In the Search box at the bottom-left of the screen, type "bluetooth and other" and press Enter. Windows should display the Bluetooth & Other Devices area of the Settings dialog box.
  2. At the left side of the screen click Typing. (See Figure 3.)
  3. Figure 3. The Settings dialog box.

  4. Turn off the controls at the top of the dialog box, under both the Spelling and Typing areas. These control what pops up as "help" as you are typing with a software keyboard.
  5. Close the Settings dialog box.

WordTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Word training. (Microsoft Word is the most popular word processing software in the world.) This tip (13729) applies to Microsoft Word 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, and 2021.

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

Word Abnormally Ends when Maximizing Program Window

If Word crashes when you maximize a previously minimized instance of the program, it is a sure sign that there is ...

Discover More

Exiting a For ... Next Loop Early

If you use For ... Next loops in your macros, make sure you give a way to jump out of the loop early. That way you can ...

Discover More

Missing Bounds Options for a Chart

When your chart contains dates along one axis, you can set bounds on the way the chart is displayed. What causes, though, ...

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)

Quickly Customizing the Keyboard

Want a quick way to change the shortcut key associated with a tool available on a ribbon, toolbar, or menu? Here's one ...

Discover More

Making Draft View the Default View

Word normally uses Print Layout view to display your documents. You may want, instead, to always use Draft view. Here's ...

Discover More

Confirming File Conversions

Open a file that isn't a Word document and Word will still try to convert it to a Word document. If you want Word to let ...

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 eight minus 5?

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.