Word Is Stuck in Foreign Language – How to Fix 

If you somehow get Word stuck in foreign language mode where none of the settings look familiar, this is usually due to changed global settings. Here’s how to change Word back to English and possibly prevent the issue later.

Fix 1: Navigate Through Word Stuck in Foreign Language and Change Local Settings

Typically, the way Word looks and where the options are doesn’t change, so you can click through settings to find the language selector.

Step 1. Maximize Word’s window and click on the first tab on the top toolbar (below the Word icon). In some versions of Word, it’s colored slightly differently (this is the “File” tab).

Step 2. Click on the option that’s on the bottom left of the entire window.

Step 3. Select the fifth tab on the left.

Step 4. You should have two boxes with buttons next to them. If you can see English in the first box, select that option and click on the second button on its right. If you can’t, click on the first button on the right.

Step 4b. If you didn’t see English originally, the first button should open a language selector. You can find English there, select it, and make it visible in the box.

Step 5. There are two buttons on the bottom-right corner of the Settings window. Click on the left one to save the change.

You will need to restart Word for the language setting to initialize.

Notably, this also allows you to put Word to any language other than English as well.

Fix 2: Remove a Foreign Language Pack From Windows Settings

If you keep getting Word stuck in foreign language mode, it’s possible it’s picking up your Windows’ display language. You’ll need to remove the foreign language from the system’s language packs.

Step 1. Go to Settings and open the “Time & language” tab.

Step 2. Select “Language & region.”

Step 3. Click on the three-dots menu for “English” and select “Move up” until it’s the first option to move Word back to English.

Step 4. Click on the three-dots menu for any foreign language and select “Remove.”

You may need to restart your system for this to take effect.

Fix 3: Check Microsoft Office Online Settings

If you’re using Microsoft 365, your account settings may be overwriting local app settings.

Step 1. Go to account.microsoft.com and sign in with your credentials.

Step 2. Go to the bottom of the page and check the footer for the language and region. Set the language to English.

Step 3. Repeat the process for setting up Word in English from Fix 1.

You may also need to change the settings on other Microsoft Office products to match.