Word/Office Stuck in German

Set English as Word’s preferred display language under File > Options > Language, then close and reopen all Office applications.

Change Word’s menus and buttons to English

1. Open Word.
2. Go to File > Options > Language.
3. Under Office display language, select English.
4. Select Set as Preferred.
5. If English is not listed:
   • Select Add a Language.
   • Add English.
   • Select it and choose Set as Preferred.
6. Close Word and any other open Office applications, then reopen Word.

The display-language setting controls Word’s ribbon, buttons, menus, and dialog boxes. The preferred language appears in bold at the top of the language list.^1^

If spelling and grammar also remain German

Display language and authoring/proofing language are separate settings. In the same File > Options > Language window:

1. Find Office authoring languages and proofing.
2. Select English.
3. Select Set as Preferred.
4. If English is absent, select Add a Language, add it, and then make it preferred.
5. If Proofing available appears beside English, select that link to obtain the required proofing tools.^1^

For an existing document whose text is still marked as German, select the affected text and change its proofing language. Word stores language as a text-level attribute, so changing Office’s default does not automatically alter existing document content.^2^

References

1. Add an editing or authoring language or set language preferences in Office | Microsoft Support
2. how to stop language defaulting to us english - Microsoft Q&A