Microsoft Word issue

Haynes, Greig 0 Reputation points
2026-10-05T06:58:26.09+00:00

When I open Word, I keep getting a message that states "We're sorry, but Word has run into an error that is preventing it from working correctly. Word will need to be closed as a result.

It then asks if I want them to repair. It doesn't repair and just closes down.

Any help with this would be great.

Microsoft 365 and Office | Other
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  1. AI answer

    2026-10-05T06:58:43.5066667+00:00

    Try this in order:

    1. Update Office
      • Open any Office app.
      • Go to File > Account.
      • Under Product Information, select Update Options > Update Now.
      • If Update Now is not shown, select Enable Updates first.
    2. Start Word in Safe Mode to check add-ins
      • Press Windows + R.
      • Type winword /a and press Enter.
      • If Word opens, the issue is likely caused by add-ins or templates not loading in this mode.
    3. Run an Office repair
      • On Windows 10: right-click Start > Apps and Features.
      • On Windows 11: right-click Start > Installed apps.
      • Select the Microsoft 365 or Office product and choose Modify.
      • If available, use Online Repair. This is more thorough than Quick Repair.
      • For MSI-based installs, select Repair and then Continue.
      • Restart the computer after the repair.
    4. If Office says it is busy or still will not open
      • Wait a few minutes and try again.
      • Restart the computer and test again.
      • If the problem continues, use the Office uninstall troubleshooter to completely remove Office, then reinstall it.
      • Note: the uninstall troubleshooter cannot uninstall Office 2024, and it requires Windows 10 or later.
    5. If Word starts but a specific document causes the crash
      • In Word, go to File > Open > Browse.
      • Select the file.
      • Click the arrow next to Open and choose Open and Repair.
    6. Advanced step: reset Word settings in the registry
      • This is only for Windows and should be done carefully.
      • Back up the registry first.
      • Close all Office apps.
      • Open regedit.
      • Go to HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Office\16.0\Word\Options.
      • Export the key before changing it.
      • Then delete the Word options key and start Word again.
      • Risk: incorrect registry changes can cause serious problems, so this should only be done if the earlier steps do not help.

    The most effective fix in this scenario is usually Modify > Online Repair, because the repair button in the error dialog is typically only a quick repair.

    References:

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