How to Change Language in Microsoft Word

This guide shows you how to change the display, editing, and proofing language in Microsoft Word on Windows, Mac, and the web version. You’ll learn to set the language for new documents, change it for existing text, and fix common issues like spell-check not working in the language you selected. No prior experience is needed—just a few minutes and access to Word’s settings.

What You’ll Need

A Microsoft Word installation (Microsoft 365, Word 2021, 2019, or 2016; steps are similar for older versions).
An internet connection if you need to download a language pack or proofing tools.
Administrator rights on your computer to install language packs (for Windows).

Step-by-Step

For Windows (Microsoft 365 / Word 2021/2019/2016):

Open Word and go to the File tab (top-left corner).
Click Options at the bottom of the left-hand menu. This opens the Word Options dialog box.
In the dialog, select Language from the left sidebar.
Under Office display language, you’ll see a list of available languages. Choose the one you want for menus and buttons, then click Set as Preferred.
Under Office authoring languages and proofing, pick the language you want to type in and have spell-checked. Click Set as Preferred.
If your language isn’t listed, click Install additional display languages from Office.com (or How do I get more display and authoring languages?). This opens a browser page where you can download the language pack. After downloading, run the installer and restart Word.
Click OK to save changes. You may need to restart Word for the display language to take effect.

To change the language of a specific document or selection:

Select the text you want to change (or press Ctrl+A to select the whole document).
Go to the Review tab and click Language > Set Proofing Language.
In the dialog, choose your desired language and click OK. This changes the spell-check and grammar language for that text only.
To make it the default for all new documents, click Set As Default in the same dialog and confirm when prompted.

For Mac:

Open Word and go to Tools > Language (or Review > Language > Set Proofing Language).
Choose the language from the list and click OK.
To change the display language, go to Tools > Preferences > General (or Word > Preferences > General). Under Language, select your preferred display language.
If the language isn’t installed, you’ll need to download it from the Microsoft website or through System Preferences > Language & Region.

For Word on the Web (browser):

Open your document in Word for the web.
Go to Review > Editor > Set Proofing Language (or click the language indicator at the bottom of the page).
Select your language from the dropdown and click OK.
The display language follows your browser’s language settings. To change it, adjust your browser’s language preferences (e.g., in Chrome, go to Settings > Languages).

Common Mistakes

Only changing the display language—this alters menus but not spell-check. You must also set the authoring/proofing language.
Forgetting to select text—if you don’t select anything, the proofing language change applies only from the cursor position onward, not the whole document.
Not restarting Word—display language changes often require a full restart to appear.
Choosing a language without proofing tools—some languages need additional downloads for spell-check to work. Check for a “Not installed” label next to the language.
Setting the default but not applying it—clicking “Set As Default” only affects new documents; existing documents need to be updated manually.

Tips

Use Ctrl+A (Windows) or Cmd+A (Mac) to select the entire document before setting the proofing language—this avoids missing any sections.
If you frequently write in multiple languages, enable Detect language automatically (in the same “Set Proofing Language” dialog). Word will then guess the language per paragraph.
For keyboard layout changes (e.g., typing in Spanish accents), add the language in Windows Settings > Time & Language > Language & Region, or Mac System Preferences > Keyboard > Input Sources.
Save a document template (e.g., .dotx) with your preferred language settings to reuse for future projects.

Troubleshooting

Language not appearing in the list: Click “Install additional display languages” and download the correct language pack. Ensure you have a stable internet connection and admin rights.
Spell-check still in English after changing: Go to Review > Language > Set Proofing Language, select your language, and uncheck “Do not check spelling or grammar.” Also make sure the language pack includes proofing tools.
Display language doesn’t change after restart: Try signing out of your Microsoft account and back in, or repair Office via Control Panel (Windows) or reinstall.
Changes only apply to one document: Click “Set As Default” in the proofing language dialog to affect all new documents. For existing documents, you must manually select all text and apply the language.
Word for the web doesn’t change language: The web version relies on your browser’s language. Update browser language settings and refresh the page.

Frequently Asked Questions

1. Can I change the language of just one paragraph?
Yes. Select the paragraph, go to Review > Language > Set Proofing Language, and choose the language. This overrides the document default for that selection.

2. Why is my spell-check not working in the new language?
Either the language pack lacks proofing tools, or the text is marked as “Do not check spelling or grammar.” Check both in the Set Proofing Language dialog.

3. How do I change the default language for all new documents?
Open any document, go to Review > Language > Set Proofing Language, select your language, and click “Set As Default.” Confirm when prompted.

4. Can I use two languages in the same document?
Yes. Word’s “Detect language automatically” feature can apply different proofing languages to different paragraphs. You can also manually set languages per selection.

5. Does changing the language affect my keyboard layout?
No. Word’s language settings only affect display and proofing. To type in a different script, change your keyboard layout in your operating system’s settings.

6. I installed a language pack but it’s not showing up.
Restart Word completely, then go to File > Options > Language. If it still doesn’t appear, repair your Office installation from Control Panel (Windows) or reinstall the language pack.

General steps for current mainstream versions; menus can differ by device and version. See the disclaimer or report an error.

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