Word is not opening

Run an Online Repair of Microsoft 365 rather than selecting Repair Now in Word’s error message.

1. Repair Microsoft 365

Online Repair repairs the entire Office installation, including Word, and is more thorough than Quick Repair.^1^

Windows 11

1. Close all Office applications.
2. Right-click Start and select Installed apps.
3. Find Microsoft 365 or Microsoft Office.
4. Select the three-dot menu beside it, then Modify.
5. Select Online Repair → Repair.
6. Complete the prompts, restart the computer if requested, and open Word.

Windows 10

1. Right-click Start and select Apps and Features.
2. Select Microsoft 365 or Microsoft Office, then Modify.
3. Select Online Repair → Repair.
4. Complete the repair and test Word.

If Office is an MSI-based installation and Online Repair is not offered, select Repair and then Continue instead.^1^

2. If Online Repair does not fix it

Test Word without loading its add-ins, global templates, or normal settings:

1. Press Windows+R.
2. Enter:

winword /a

3. Press Enter.

The /a startup switch isolates components that commonly interfere with Word startup.^2^

• If Word opens: an add-in, template, or Word setting is likely involved. Open File → Options → Add-ins, use the Manage list and Go button, and disable add-ins before testing Word normally.
• If Word still displays the same error: proceed to reinstall Microsoft 365.

3. Reinstall only if repair fails

Use the Microsoft Office uninstall troubleshooter to remove Office completely, restart Windows, and then reinstall Office from the Microsoft account associated with the subscription. Reinstallation is the documented next path when repair does not resolve the startup failure.^3^

Avoid manually deleting Office registry keys or folders at this stage. Registry changes can reset Word preferences or cause additional problems, and Microsoft’s Word troubleshooting procedure requires exporting a backup before modifying those keys.^2^

References

1. Repair an Office application | Microsoft Support
2. How to troubleshoot problems that occur when you start or use Word | Microsoft Support
3. Word is not working. - Microsoft Q&A