To Use the Spell Check, First Click on Tools

Spelling

Correct spelling is necessary in order for your ideas and arguments to shine through clearly in your written work. Luckily, word processing programs have spell checks that make it VERY easy to produce written work with flawless spelling.

If you have never used the spell check function before, the instructions for using it in Microsoft Word are listed below:

In Microsoft Word:

At the top of the screen, you will see a list of headings: File, Edit, View, Insert, Format, Tools, Table, Window, Help. If you click the mouse on any of these headings, a whole list of different functions will appear under the heading.

¨  ¨ To use the spell check, first click on Tools.

¨  ¨ Under the Tools heading, click on Spelling and Grammar.

¨  ¨ The spell check will go through your document and highlight words that appear to be spelled incorrectly. It will give you suggestions of how the word might be spelled correctly.

¨  ¨ If more than one alternative spelling is suggested, you will need to click on the correct suggestion so that it becomes highlighted on the screen.

¨  ¨ You may choose to Ignore the computer’s suggestion (e.g., if the spell check has found a person’s name that it doesn’t recognize but is spelled correctly nonetheless) or Change the spelling of the word. Before you choose Change, make sure that you have clicked on (i.e., highlighted) the correct word (among the list of alternative suggestions) that you want the computer to substitute.

If you have questions about how to use the spell check on your computer, look up SPELLING in the Help menu for complete instructions. Computer help is also available at the computer lab on campus and thru the learning center.