Methods to fix “Microsoft Word not responding” issue

Read time: 6 minutes

Most users have likely encountered the frustrating “Word not responding” error while using Microsoft Word at some point. This issue can be particularly concerning when you’re in the midst of working on a document or have just completed your work without saving it. The error tends to occur unexpectedly, and the inability to recover unsaved work often stems from a lack of knowledge about the methods for retrieving lost MS Word documents. This can result in wasted time and effort. Our aim is to assist you in addressing this problem by providing insights into the causes and potential solutions for this error. We hope you find this information helpful and valuable.

Why does Microsoft Word stop responding?

The “Microsoft Word not responding” error can manifest as either an error message or the freezing of the Word graphical user interface. This situation renders you unable to perform basic tasks such as typing, saving, editing, closing, or printing the Word document. When faced with this issue, you have two main options: wait for the program to become responsive again or close it if it remains unresponsive for an extended period with no improvement. Let’s explore the underlying reasons for encountering the “Microsoft Word is not responding” error, which are outlined below:

• Sometimes the timeout of the server may stop opening, saving, or accessing a document that is hosted on a remote server.
• The program file is damaged.
• An incompatible add-in.
• Your Word is outdated: An outdated version of an application or software tends to create issues.
• Office edition is incompatible with the operating system on your computer.
• The system’s driver is not updated.

There are several workarounds that you can test to make MS Word application functional again and you should apply them in the affected systems.

Follow the steps given:

1. Open Task Manager. You can either type Task Manager in the search box, click Open, or press the Ctrl+Alt+Del keys and select Task Manager.
2. Click Microsoft Office Word and select End Task.
3. This will help you close the selected program, Word, in this case.
4. You should also expand More details further and then select MS Word and press End task. If disk usage is displayed as 100%, then RAM is overloaded. You need to fix this issue first.

Opening Word or any other Microsoft Office application in Safe Mode provides a way to use the application safely when you’re experiencing errors. This mode can be especially helpful when a file won’t open in normal mode due to application crashes or interference from add-ins or extensions.
Follow the steps given under to open Word in Safe Mode:

• Press the Windows+R keys which will open the Run box.
• Type WINWORD /safe in the Run box. Click OK.
• If the Word file opens, it means that there is no damage to the file. If you cannot open a Word file, it is either due to an incompatible Add-in or the corruption of your file.
• To fix the issue of incompatible add-ins, try to disable/remove them as given in method 3.

To identify the specific plug-in or add-in responsible for an issue in Microsoft Word, it’s advisable to disable or remove them one at a time. After disabling or removing an add-in, you should restart your computer and open Word to see if the problem persists. This step-by-step approach allows you to pinpoint which plug-in or add-in is causing the issue, making it easier to address and resolve the problem effectively.
To disable/remove third-party plug-in/add-in, follow the steps given below:

1. Follow steps 1-3 of method 2.
2. Open MS Word.
3. Click File in the toolbar.
4. Click Options on the left panel.
5. Click Add-ins on the left panel. A list of all add-ins will be displayed.
6. Click Go adjacent to the drop-down box with the name Manage: COM Add-ins.
7. Click on the check box next to the add-in you wish to disable. Click OK.

To use the MS Office Application Recovery Tool feature, follow the steps:

1. Go to Start>> All Programs>> MS Office Tools >> MS Office Application Recovery Tool.
2. Select the Word file which has stopped responding.
3. Click Recovery Application in order to recover the unsaved/lost word file.

Follow the steps given below to repair MS Office Enterprise:

1. Go to the search box, enter control panel, and click Search.
2. Open Control Panel.
3. Click Programs & Features.
4. Find the Microsoft Office Enterprise version in the list and right-click. Select Change.
5. Tap on Quick Repair and then hit Repair. This will start repairing your MS Office version.
6. Restart your computer and open Word, and see if it has started responding.

When your Microsoft Word stops responding, there can be an issue with your existing version, so you must look to update your Word to the latest version with updated bug fixes and more features. For this, here is what you need to do.

• Access Word and tap on the File Menu.
• Go to Account and click on “Update Options” then choose “Update Now.”
• It will download and look to install any available latest updates.
• Restart your PC after the process.

If Microsoft Word fails to respond, clear temporary files and cache. Any conflicts or errors that cause the program to freeze or become unresponsive can be resolved by doing this. Follow the steps given below:

• Access Word and go to the File menu.
• Tap on Options and go to Advanced.
• Under the Display section, checkmark the box “Show all windows in the taskbar.”
• Tap on OK to save the changes.

If the above approaches fail and your Microsoft Word not responding issue still prevails, then you can look to reset the Word settings altogether. Here is how to do so.

• Exit Word and open file explorer.
• Go to “C:\Users(your username)\AppData\ Roaming\Microsoft\Templates.” Sometimes the AppData file is not visible as it is hidden. To access the Templates subdirectory, just type the full path into your Explorer address window and press Enter.
• Right-click on the “Normal.dot” file and tap on “Rename.” Change the name to “OldNormal.dot” or “Normalold.dot.”
• Access Word. In this case, Normal.dot will be recreated based on its default settings. Your issues must be resolved by now.

When all the previously mentioned solutions fail to resolve the issue, you may require a dependable tool to repair and recover your data from corrupted Word files. This will prevent the loss of your valuable work, time, and effort. The process is straightforward and involves three simple steps: Select, Repair, and Save. The Kernel for Word Repair tool is a reliable option that allows you to repair multiple Word files of varying sizes in a single operation. It can retrieve the entire content of MS Word documents, including text, fonts, formatting, forms, tables, lists, hyperlinks, graphics, charts, headers, and footers, all in their original form. Furthermore, it’s worth noting that this tool is capable of fixing all types of errors in Word files.

Conclusion

Microsoft Word applications can generate a range of errors, including issues like Word not opening, corrupt or inaccessible Word files, and failure to auto-save documents, among others. Our tool is a reliable solution for repairing corrupt Word files and recovering the complete content from them. You can place your trust in this tool to effectively address and resolve various types of errors that may occur in Word files.