Please Note: This article is written for users of the following Microsoft Excel versions: 97, 2000, 2002, and 2003. If you are using a later version (Excel 2007 or later), this tip may not work for you. For a version of this tip written specifically for later versions of Excel, click here: Allowing for Words that Contain Numbers.

Allowing for Words that Contain Numbers

Written by Allen Wyatt (last updated January 1, 2020)
This tip applies to Excel 97, 2000, 2002, and 2003


Have you ever noticed that one of the side effects of our fast-paced world is the creation of new words? It seems that every day—particularly in the technological or medical fields—that new words are bursting forth on the scene. Some of these words are actually composed of letters and numbers together. For instance, b2b is an acronym (word?) meaning business-to-business.

Normally such words would be flagged by Excel's spelling checker as being incorrect. If you create worksheets that contain quite a few words that are formed by mixing letters and numbers, you may want to instruct Excel to ignore them. You can do so by following these steps:

  1. Choose Options from the Tools menu. Excel displays the Options dialog box.
  2. Make sure the Spelling tab is selected. (See Figure 1.)
  3. Figure 1. The Spelling tab of the Options dialog box.

  4. Make sure the Ignore Words with Numbers check box is selected.
  5. Click on OK.

ExcelTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Excel training. This tip (3380) applies to Microsoft Excel 97, 2000, 2002, and 2003. You can find a version of this tip for the ribbon interface of Excel (Excel 2007 and later) here: Allowing for Words that Contain Numbers.

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. ...

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