The word WINWORD stands for Microsoft Word. However, you can encounter this error when you try to access/open other Office applications like Excel, Powerpoint, Outlook, etc. WINWORD.EXE error can occur due to several reasons: Below is a list of the most common error messages related to the WINWORD.EXE file, that you may receive during a computer or program startup while trying to use a specific function on the machine or application.
WINWORD.EXE is corruptedWINWORD.EXE cannot be locatedRuntime Error – WINWORD.EXEWINWORD.EXE file errorWINWORD.EXE file cannot be loaded, Module was not foundCannot register WINWORD.EXE fileWINWORD.EXE file could not be loadedWINWORD.EXE file doesn’t existWINWORD.EXE Application ErrorWINWORD.EXE failedWINWORD.EXE is not runningWINWORD.EXE not foundCannot find WINWORD.EXEFaulting Application Path: WINWORD.EXEWINWORD.EXE is not a valid Win32 applicationWINWORD.EXE crash wwlib.dll.
These error messages sometimes are accompanied by an error code(s). Nevertheless, whichever of the error you experience, the fix is essentially the same.
Fix WINWORD.EXE errors
There are several workarounds for fixing this error message with the most effective one to repair the Microsoft Office suite. Before you begin any troubleshooting procedure, first restart your system and see if that remedies the problem. It is known that sometimes a restart eliminates the issue. You can try the solutions listed below in no particular order.
1] Run System Restore
Perform System Restore and see if that helps. Restoring your PC to a good prior point where you did not face this error is a good quick way of eliminating this issue.
2] Terminate the winword.exe process
Open Task Manager, locate WINWORD.EXE, right-click on it, and select End task. Then re-launch the Office application.
3] Scan your PC with antivirus software
The legit WINWORD.EXE process is typically found in the following location (For Office 2016): If found elsewhere, it could be malware. Since malware is known to use this name, it is best to scan your computer for any malicious software.
4] Run Word without Macros
To prevent Word from loading the macros type winword /m in the Run box and hit Enter. See if running Word without macros helps. If it works fine then you need to remove the offending macro.
5] Run Word without add-ins
To prevent Word from loading its add-ins, type winword /a in the Run box and hit Enter. See if running Word without add-ins helps. If it works fine then you need to remove the offending add-in.
6] Reset the Word registry values to default
First, terminate the winword.exe process. Now to reset the Word Registry values to default type winword /r in Run box and hit Enter. Launch Word and see if this helped.
7] Troubleshoot in Clean Boot State
Perform a Clean Boot and try to identify the offender. Clean-boot troubleshooting is designed to isolate a performance problem. To perform clean-boot troubleshooting, you must take a number of actions, and then restart the computer after each action. You may need to manually disable one item after another to try and pinpoint the one that is causing the problem. Once you have identified the offender, you can consider uninstalling or disabling it. If you recently started to get this error message, recall and check if you installed any recent application on your computer. Below are known conflicting software to watch out for:
Abbyy FinereaderFun ToolsToshiba Book ReaderAcrobat PDFMakerFastPictureViewerAdobe Acrobat
Also, users reported that Nvidia driver NVWGF2UM.DLL and Canon MF8000 UFRI LT XPS driver might cause the problem. In which case, update the driver(s) to their latest versions after downloading it from the manufacturer’s website.
8] Repair Office
Repairing your Office Installation is a useful and effective solution if your installation has got corrupted or is the Office programs are not working properly.
9] Reinstall Office
If your Office installation has become totally corrupted and none of the above solutions have helped you, you may need to uninstall and reinstall the Microsoft Office suite. All the best!
