Using Microsoft Word, you've created a professional high quality report at work, or a resume if you are looking for a job. It's ready to be published to the target reader. The only problem is, it's full of red (potential spelling mistakes) and green (potential grammar mistakes) squiggly underlines.

Adding all the words that are underlined in red to your dictionary will only affect your own computer. When the document is opened on someone else's computer, those lines will be back and you won't even know it.

Is it possible to get rid of not only the red but also the green squiggly underlines for good? Absolutely. Just follow the simple instructions below.

Screenshot of a document with words underlined in red and green in Microsoft Word.

Maximize the quality of your writing by always turning spell checking and grammar checking back on when you go to make changes to the document.
Did You Know? Canadian English is not the same as U.S. English and is different from U.K. English. Always select the correct language to ensure Word is using the correct spelling and grammar rules in your document.

The first step should always be to spell check and grammar check your document. Make sure Word isn't actually right. Poor spelling (red squiggly underlines) and grammar (green squiggly underlines) can often remove all the credibility you built up in an otherwise very professional looking and sounding documents.

The next steps to follow will depend on the version of Microsoft Word that you are using.

Word 2010 | Word 2007 | Word 2003

Word 2010

Screenshot: Word 2010 showing language dialogue box.Start by pressing CTRL-A to select your whole document.

1. Click on the Review tab at the top of the window and then on the Language button. Click on Set Proofing Language…

OR

Click on the name of the language in the status bar at the bottom of the screen.

2. Add a check mark in the Do not check spelling or grammar option and click OK.

All the red and green squiggly underlines should be gone.

3. While you are there, to ensure that the recipient sees things exactly as you do, make sure that you set the document display to Final.

Word 2007

Screenshot: Word 2007 showing language dialogue box.Start by pressing CTRL-A to select your whole document.

1. Click on the Review tab at the top of the window and then on the Language button. It's the one with a globe and a checkmark in the proofing section.

OR

Click on the name of the language in the status bar at the bottom of the screen.

2. Add a check mark in the Do not check spelling or grammar option and click OK.

That's it. The red and green squiggly underlines should have vanished.

3. While you are there, to ensure that the recipient sees things exactly as you do, make sure that you set the document display to Final.

Word 2003

Screenshot: Word 2003 showing language dialogue box.Start by pressing CTRL-A to select your whole document.

1. Click on the Tools menu at the top of the window, then on Language and then on Set Language…. If you don't see Language in the menu, double-click on the Tools menu to expand the list.

OR

Click on the name of the language in the status bar at the bottom of the screen.

2. Add a check mark in the Do not check spelling or grammar option and click OK.

There shouln't be any red or green squiggly underlines left.