Word processors are a wonderful invention.  Word processing programs make it simple to move paragraphs around, re-organize text and re-write sentences as needed until your document is complete. There is no doubt that a spell checker is a great help — obviously, they can catch a great many spelling errors. And since MS Word offers separate language settings for US, UK, Canadian and Australian English, a spell checker can also be used to check for style consistency.

But it’s also necessary to be aware of the limitations of a computerized spell checker. Computers do not think. Computers are programmed. When a computer checks spelling, it does not read sentences.  Rather, it recognizes individual words based on a programmed list of acceptable words. Thus, a computer could recognize a misspelling as a correct word.  For example, accidentally dropping the “e” from the word “rate” will result in the word “rat”.  So a computer will never tell you that your sentence discussing the “rat of change” contains a misspelling.  Similarly, the word “fiver” is slang for a five-dollar bill (US) or a five-pound note (UK). A spell checker will consider that bit of slang an acceptable word and never suggest that you might have meant “fiber”.

In the final stage of checking any manuscript, there is no substitute for human eyes. The document should be printed out and carefully read to catch any typos or spelling errors that a computer will never see.