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VIjay33126115kg2u
Participant
September 11, 2024
Question

Spell-check does not highlight US English words in a document that is setup as UK English

  • September 11, 2024
  • 4 replies
  • 945 views

Hi,

I am sure this question has been asked in the past. I couldn't really find a solution. I have a document that needs to be in UK English. The text came from different sources and some have used US English. I have changed the language to UK English in Preference, selected every word in the document and converted it to UK English and even changed the Paragraph Styles. Inspite of all this, US English words do not show up when I run a spell-check and are not highlighted with 'Dynamic Spelling' switched on. 

 

Has anyone had any luck with this problem? 

 

Thanks,

Vijay.

4 replies

D
Dazzer2473
Known Participant
January 8, 2025

Yes it is very annoying.

 

Peter Spier
Community Expert
Peter SpierCommunity Expert
Community Expert
September 13, 2024

if the US spelling is listed in the dictionary as an accepted alternate to the UK (and vice versa) I don't think there's any way to get Spell Check to flag it other than to edit the dictionary

    Mike Witherell
    Community Expert
    Mike WitherellCommunity Expert
    Community Expert
    September 13, 2024

    Which essential dictionary are you using? Hunspell, yes?

    Mike Witherell
    Anshul_Saini
    Community Manager
    Anshul_SainiCommunity Manager
    Community Manager
    September 11, 2024

    Hi @VIjay33126115kg2u,

     

    Thanks for reaching out. It seems like you’ve taken all the right steps to set your document to UK English, but the issue persists with the spell-check not highlighting US English words. Here are a few additional suggestions that might help:

     

    1. Sometimes, individual character styles may override the paragraph styles. Make sure the language settings in all character styles are also set to UK English.

    2. After setting the document to UK English, try reapplying the language settings by selecting all text (Ctrl+A), then go to Character > Language and set it to UK English again.

    3. Use the ‘Clear Overrides’ option in Paragraph and Character Styles to ensure no residual settings are affecting the text.

    4. Go to Edit > Preferences > Spelling and ensure that the correct dictionary (UK English) is selected and active for spell-check.


    As a workaround, you can use the Find/Change feature to manually check for common US English spellings that differ from UK English and change them accordingly.

     

    Let me know if these steps help or if there’s anything else I can assist with!

     

    Best regards,

    Anshul Saini

    V
    VIjay33126115kg2uAuthor
    Participant
    September 13, 2024

    Hi Anshul,

    I have done all the above mentioned in the attached test document. It is setup in UK English. As you can see, dynamic spelling does highlight some words but failed to spot all of them.

    Running a Find/change is not very practical as the original document is massive. Why does Adobe deduct some words but has ignored some others?

    Regards,

    Vijay.

    Vijay Narayanan
    Senior Designer and Partner

     

    <Personal information removed by MOD>

    Abhishek Rao
    Community Manager
    Abhishek RaoCommunity Manager
    Community Manager
    September 13, 2024

    Sorry, the attachment didn't go through in the response. I have attached it here.


    Hi @VIjay33126115kg2u,

     

    Thanks for your response and for providing the additional details. It sounds like you’ve done a thorough job in setting up your document, but I understand how frustrating it can be when spell-check doesn’t catch all inconsistencies.

     

    To better assist you, could you please let me know which version of InDesign you’re using and your operating system? This will help in determining if there might be any version-specific issues or updates that could address the problem.

     

    In the meantime, please try the below suggestions: 

    1. Rebuild the Dictionary: Sometimes the dictionary files can become outdated or corrupted. Try resetting your dictionary by going to `Edit > Preferences > Dictionary` and rebuilding the dictionary.

     

    2. Check for Custom Dictionary Settings: Make sure that no custom dictionaries or exceptions are affecting the spell-check process. You can manage these in 'Edit > Preferences > Dictionary'.

     

    Let me know how it goes or if there’s anything else I can assist with!

     

    Thank you, 

    Abhishek Rao

     

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