For the last couple of days, I have been struggling to open Microsoft Word on my Mac. It bounces after clicking in the icon and then nothing happens. I have to force the app to shut down. All the other office apps are working fine. I downloaded the latest version of Mac OS. What do I do if Microsoft Word is not opening on my Mac??
Question: Q: why isn't microsoft word not opening anymore a couple weeks ago i reset my entire mac because i inherited it from my father, and i wanted just my things on it, but i noticed that it didn't have any of the Microsoft applications like word or powerpoint which i use on a daily basis. Accessing the tab settings. Open Microsoft Word on your Mac with any document and then follow these steps. 1) Click Word from your menu bar. 2) Select Preferences. 3) Choose Ribbon & Toolbar in the pop-up window.
- Follow these steps to fix the issue: Open Windows File Explorer, navigate to the folder that contains the file, then right-click the file. Select Open With. Select Microsoft Word from the list of options. The next time you select the file, it will open correctly.
- Refer to this article: Sign in to manage your Office product, sign to Services & subscriptions with the affected email address. Check if there have the correct license in the email account. Download and run the license removal tool, then you can try to activate Word again.
- I just installed El Capitan on my iMac 927-INCH, MID 2011). Word files (.docx) made previously won't open. They report the error: If I open a blank file and save it as a.docx, it opens fine. There seems to be an incompatibility with Word 2011 14.5.9 (151119) with El Capitan and files saved on Yosemite. Excel and Powerpoint files seem to work.
Microsoft Word is being used by millions of people every day. While this program has excellent support, there may come a point when you struggle with Word not opening on Mac. Luckily, this issue can usually be taken care of with nothing more than some minor changes to your computer and its software. There are also steps that you can take to make sure that you avoid future problems with Word not working on your Mac.
- 1. Remove Word Preferences
- 2. Open and Repair Word
- 3. Run Disk Utility to Repair Word
- 4. Open Word Documents in Safe Mode Nexus mods for ps4.
- 5. Recover Not Opening Word Documents on Mac
Part 1: Possible Reasons Behind Word Won’t Open on Mac
If Microsoft Word won’t open on Mac then the first thing to do is research exactly what can cause this type of problem. This will help you understand why it has occurred and can make fixing it much easier as well. Some possible reasons include:
The installation file was corrupted and the program is no longer functioning normally.
Background system settings are blocking the program and not allowing it to function properly.
The Word document you’re trying to open is damaged or corrupted.
The storage device your documents are stored on has a corrupted partition.
You are using an old version of Microsoft Word which has a bug that causes opening problems.
Your reason might not be listed and that’s because realistically there are hundreds of different causes of this error, some of which aren’t related to Word. Nonetheless, you can approach the problem with similar fixes.
Part 2: 5 Solutions to Microsoft Word Not Opening on Mac
Now that you have taken a look at some of the most common reasons why Word not opening on Mac, it is time to consider some possible solutions. While a few of these solutions might seem complicated, they should actually be quite easy to carry out as long as you take your time and make sure that you understand each individual step. With a little bit of caution and some patience, you should be able to avoid many of the problems that Mac users often run into.
1Remove Word Preferences
When Microsoft Word won't open on Mac, there is a relatively good chance that there are some problems with Word’s preferences. The default template might be clashing with its function, and that will sometimes result in errors. To remove Word preferences:
Step 1. Go to the Word tab and click Preferences.
Step 2. Under the Personal Settings header, click File Locations.
Step 3. Select User Templates and press Reset.
Step 4. If the reset doesn’t work, click Modify… instead and in the folder that is opened, move the “Normal.dotm” file to a different folder.
2Open and Repair Word
Another simple method that you can use when Word not opening on Mac is to run the built-in repair tool. Since this is already a feature of Microsoft Word, there’s no reason for this not being one of the first things you try (and it’ll only take a minute).
Step 1. Launch Word and click the File tab.
Step 2. Choose Open and after you choose the Word document, select Repair from the drop-down menu.
Statcalc. Step 3. Word will run a scan of the document and repair it if any errors are found.
3Run Disk Utility to Repair Word
If there are more pervasive problems with Word then you might need to use a more thorough repair method, such as the Disk Utility program that comes as part of the Mac OSX. To access and use this tool, follow these steps:
Step 1. Head over to the Go menu and in the Utilities folder, open Disk Utility.
Step 2. Choose the hard drive for your computer where you have Microsoft Word installed. This is usually the primary disk unless you changed the default installation location.
Step 3. After choosing the correct disk, click on the tab First Aid and press Run.
Step 4. A scan of the selected disk will now be run. If any errors are found as a result of the scan, they'll be repaired too.
4Open Word Documents in Safe Mode
Those other solutions can fix quite a few problems, but there may come a point when you need to open a Word document as quickly as possible. In those types of situations, running the program in Safe Mode might be your best option until you can figure out a long-term solution. To open Word in Safe Mode:
Step 1. Restart your computer while continuously holding the Shift key.
Step 2. Continue holding the Shift key as your computer boots up.
Step 3. Your Mac computer will now be running in Safe Mode. Open Microsoft Word and check if the documents also open successfully.
5Recover Not Opening Word Documents on Mac
Using some of the build-in recovery and diagnostic tools is a great start, and at least one of those solutions might work for you. That being said, the built-in tools aren’t foolproof, and there may come a point when you need to try a third-party Mac data recovery software - AnyRecover. It allows you to recover lost or deleted files within a very short period of time.
Features of iMyFone AnyRecover:
Restore deleted, missing, lost or unsaved Word documents on Mac.
Recover all Microsoft Office documents, including Word, PowerPoint, Excel files, PDF, photos, videos, songs, audios, and many more.
Word documents saved on MacBook, MacBook Pro, MacBook Air, iMac, Mac Mini, or other removable devices can be recovered.
Support OS X Mavericks, OS X Yosemite, OS X El Capitan, macOS Sierra, macOS High Sierra, macOS Mojave and macOS Catalina.
Safely restore original documents on Word 2006, Word 2020 and poses no risk to the files.
Follow these steps to retrieve not opening Word files on Mac:
Step 1. Start by installing AnyRecover on your Mac and launching the program, then choose the saved location of your lost Word documents.
Step 2. When you click the “Start” button, an all-round scan will be run to detect the missing, deleted or lost Word files.
Step 3. After the scan is complete, browse the results and choose your desired Word documents. To recover the original versions of these documents, click “Recover” and they will be returned.
Bonus: Tips for Avoiding Word Not Working on Mac Issue
If Word not opening on Mac has become an ongoing problem and you consistently experience it, then you might want to take some preventative steps. There are a few things you can do, including:
Don’t use disk clean up tools which target program’s cache files. If you are writing in Microsoft Word then autosaved versions of your documents are cached – clean up tools delete the cache and therefore some parts of your document will be missing.
Always keep a backup of important documents and store the backups on an external storage device so if your primary disk breaks, the documents will not be completely lost.
If you make changes to your hard drive (such as partitioning or doing a disk format), make sure that you take a backup of every important file. It is highly likely that these actions will cause your files to be lost too.
Conclusion
When you experience Word not opening on Mac for the first time, you might feel as though your productivity has been brought to a halt. Luckily, this is a problem that can always be fixed and usually within minutes. Be patient, work your way through the different solutions we’ve just walked you through, and eventually one of them will do the trick. Mac DOC Files Recovery Software like AnyRecover is the perfect solution for you.
You can convert and open documents in Pages on iPhone, iPad, iPod touch, or Mac. If you don't have an Apple device, you can use Pages online at iCloud.com.
Convert and open documents in Pages on iPhone or iPad
You can work with a variety of file formats in Pages on your iPhone or iPad. Check which formats are compatible with Pages on iPhone and iPad.
Convert a Pages document in Pages on iPhone or iPad
If you want to open a Pages document in another app like Microsoft Word, use Pages to convert the document to an appropriate format.
- Open the document that you want to convert, then tap the More button .
- Tap Export.
- Choose a format for your document.
- If you chose EPUB, set any additional options.
- Choose how you want to send your document, like with Mail or Messages.
Open a file in Pages on iPhone or iPad
To open a file like a Microsoft Word document in Pages on iPhone or iPad, tap the file in the document manager. If you don’t see the document manager, tap Documents (on iPad) or the back button (on iPhone), then tap the file that you want to open. If a file is dimmed, it’s not in a compatible format.
You can also open a file in Pages from a different app like the Files app, or from an email:
- Open the other app, then select the document or attachment.
- Tap the Share button .
- Tap Copy to Pages. The original file remains intact.
When the file opens, you might get a message that the document will look different. For example, Pages notifies you when fonts are missing. Tap Done to open the document in Pages.
Convert and open documents in Pages for Mac
You can work with a variety of file formats in Pages for Mac. Check which formats are compatible.
Convert a Pages document in Pages for Mac
If you want to open a Pages document in another app like Microsoft Word, use Pages to convert the document to an appropriate format.
- Open the Pages document that you want to convert.
- Choose File > Export To, then select the format.
- In the window that appears, you can choose a different format or set up any additional options. For example, you can require a password to open an exported PDF, choose to use the table of contents in an exported EPUB book, or choose the format for the exported Word document.
- Click Next.
- Enter a name for your file, then choose a location for the file.
- Click Export.
To send a file in a specific format through Mail, Messages, AirDrop, or Notes, choose Share > Send a Copy, choose how you want to send the document, then choose a format.
Open a file in Pages for Mac
You can open a file from the Finder or from the Pages app:
- From the Finder, Control-click the file, then choose Open With > Pages. If Pages is the only word processor on your Mac, you can just double-click the file.
- From the Pages for Mac app, choose File > Open, select the file, then click Open. If a file is dimmed, it’s not a compatible format.
When the file opens, you might get a message that the document will look different. For example, Pages notifies you when fonts are missing. You might see also see warnings when you open documents created in older versions of Pages.
Open and convert documents in Pages for iCloud
Pages for iCloud lets you open, edit, and share your files from a supported browser on a Mac or PC. Check which file formats are compatible with Pages for iCloud. If you don't have an Apple device, learn how to create an Apple ID.
Convert a Pages document in Pages for iCloud
- Sign in to iCloud.com with your Apple ID.
- Click Pages.
- In the document manager, click the More button on the file you want to convert, then choose Download a Copy. If you have the document open, click the Tools button in the toolbar, then choose Download a Copy.*
- Choose a format for the document. The file starts begins to download to your browser’s download location.
Microsoft Word On Macbook Air
* To convert your document to an EPUB book, open the document, click the Tools button in the toolbar, then choose Download a Copy.
Open a file in Pages for iCloud
- Sign in to iCloud.com with your Apple ID.
- Click Pages.
- Drag the file you want to upload into the Pages document manager in your browser. Or click the Upload button , select the file, then click Choose.
- Double-click the file in the document manager.
Check file format compatibility
Formats you can open in Pages
You can open these file formats in Pages on iPhone, iPad, Mac, and online at iCloud.com:
- All Pages versions
- Microsoft Word: Office Open XML (.docx) and Office 97 or later (.doc)
- Rich Text Format (.rtf/.rtfd)
- Plain Text files (.txt)
Formats you can convert Pages documents into
Pages on iPhone or iPad:
- Microsoft Word: Office Open XML (.docx)
- Rich Text Format (.rtf/.rtfd)
- EPUB
Pages for Mac:
- Microsoft Word: Office Open XML (.docx) and Office 97 or later (.doc)
- Rich Text Format (.rtf/.rtfd)
- Plain Text files (.txt)
- EPUB
- Pages ‘09
Microsoft Word Not Responding Mac
Pages for iCloud:
- Microsoft Word: Office Open XML (.docx)
- EPUB
Learn more
- Pages on iPhone, iPad, Mac, and online at iCloud.com use the same file format. If you create or edit a document in Pages on one platform, you can open it in Pages on any of the other platforms.
- You can update to current versions of Pages on your iPhone or iPad from the App Store. To update Pages on your Mac, use the App Store app on your Mac.
- If you convert a Pages document into Pages ’09-compatible document, learn more about changes that happen when you export to iWork ’09.