Spell Checking Your Worksheet

Written by Allen Wyatt (last updated October 9, 2021)
This tip applies to Excel 97, 2000, 2002, and 2003


Excel provides a built-in spelling checker you can use to proof (double-check) your worksheets. This tool works in much the same way as the spelling checker does in other Office applications. To run the spelling checker, follow these steps:

  1. Select the worksheet or worksheets that you want to be included in the spelling check.
  2. Choose Spelling from the Tools menu, or press F7. Word begins to check the spelling of your worksheet, displaying the Spelling dialog box as it discovers potential errors.
  3. Respond to the spelling suggestions as appropriate.

You don't have to spell check an entire worksheet; you can run the spelling checker on a range of cells, as well. To run the spelling checker on a range, do the following:

  1. Select the cells you want to be checked.
  2. Choose Spelling from the Tools menu, or press F7.
  3. Respond to the spelling suggestions as appropriate.

When the spelling check of the selection is complete, Excel displays a dialog box asking if you want to have the rest of your worksheet checked. Click on No to end the spelling check.

ExcelTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Excel training. This tip (2007) applies to Microsoft Excel 97, 2000, 2002, and 2003.

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

Moving Groups of Data Labels at One Time

Having problems working with data labels in your charts? That's not unusual; here's an idea of an add-in that could help ...

Discover More

Displaying a Hidden First Column

Hiding columns is easy, even hiding column A. How, then, do you get that left-most column displayed again? Here are a few ...

Discover More

Spreading Out Worksheet Rows

If someone sends you a worksheet that has lots of data in it, you might want to "spread out" the data so you can have ...

Discover More

Dive Deep into Macros! Make Excel do things you thought were impossible, discover techniques you won't find anywhere else, and create powerful automated reports. Bill Jelen and Tracy Syrstad help you instantly visualize information to make it actionable. You’ll find step-by-step instructions, real-world case studies, and 50 workbooks packed with examples and solutions. Check out Microsoft Excel 2019 VBA and Macros today!

More ExcelTips (menu)

Setting Spell-Checking Options

The spell checker can come in handy when entering data in a worksheet. Because the type of data you enter can vary so ...

Discover More

Backing Up Custom Dictionaries

The custom dictionary used in Excel contains the information you decide relative to spelling. After a while, you might ...

Discover More

Spell-checking Uppercase Words

Excel's spell-checker normally checks uppercase words for spelling. If your worksheet contains a lot of acronyms, you ...

Discover More
Subscribe

FREE SERVICE: Get tips like this every week in ExcelTips, 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 two minus 0?

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 Excel that uses the menu interface (Excel 97, Excel 2000, Excel 2002, or Excel 2003)? This site is for you! If you use a later version of Excel, visit our ExcelTips site focusing on the ribbon interface.

Newest Tips
Subscribe

FREE SERVICE: Get tips like this every week in ExcelTips, 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.