How do I stop proper nouns being auto-corrected in Outlook?

Alison Casey 40 Reputation points
2026-08-24T07:26:28.3233333+00:00

I work in a very multi-cultural workplace and constantly have to double check that my colleagues' names that aren’t straight down the line Anglo names haven’t been auto-corrected to an English word (for example Veen keeps being changed to Even) in emails. I just want auto-correct turned off if the word starts with a capital letter - is that possible?

Outlook | Windows | New Outlook for Windows | For business
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Hornblower409 14,815 Reputation points
2026-08-25T04:18:54.39+00:00

@Alison Casey said

I don’t want to add every single [name] to the dictionary

If what you are seeing is autocorrect and not a spelling error (squiggly underline) then adding the name to the dictionary will not help.

there’s a really wide range of names that are now getting autocorrected away

Known limitation. There is no way you can fix it. See the Answer by "Hornblower409 Jul 10 2026" at
https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/answers/questions/5875200/how-do-i-stop-a-certain-word-being-autocorrected-i

(That thread is about "Greta" always being autocorrected to "Great")

All you can do at this point is Vote for and Comment on this Feature Request:
No fine-grained control over Autocorrect
https://feedbackportal.microsoft.com/feedback/idea/844fef98-3428-f111-9730-7c1e52f15e53

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Aetherin 1,705 Reputation points Independent Advisor
2026-08-24T07:44:35.03+00:00

Hi @Alison Casey,

I can understand why this would be inconvenient for you.

Unfortunately, New Outlook does not currently provide a setting to keep AutoCorrect enabled while excluding capitalized words or proper nouns.

The closest workaround I can suggest is to disable AutoCorrect while keeping Microsoft Editor's spelling suggestions enabled. This way, Outlook will underline potential spelling mistakes and suggest corrections, rather than automatically replacing names such as "Veen."

This does mean accepting corrections manually, but it avoids having to add every colleague’s name to the dictionary and reduces the risk of names being changed without notice.

Since the proper noun exception you're looking for is not currently available, you may also consider submitting it as a feature request through Help > Feedback > Make a suggestion in New Outlook, or by posting your feedback here: Outlook (new) · Community

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These are the official channels through which feedback is reviewed by the product team and considered for future enhancements.

Thank you for your understanding and for taking the time to share this use case. Feedback like yours helps highlight real-world needs and can influence future product improvements.

Hopefully, a more flexible solution will become available in the future to make this experience work better for everyone.

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  1. Alison Casey 40 Reputation points
    2026-08-24T07:31:16.1633333+00:00

    Well, it certainly didn’t solve the problem - there’s a really wide range of names that are now getting autocorrected away so I don’t want to add every single one to the dictionary. I’m also a somewhat careless typist so I like having autocorrect generally. So I guess the answer is there is no good solution to my problem.

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  2. AI answer

    2026-08-24T07:26:55.31+00:00

    No. Outlook does not provide a setting to turn off AutoCorrect only for words that start with a capital letter.

    What is supported:

    1. In new Outlook for Windows, AutoCorrect and auto capitalization can only be turned on or off globally for the message editor.
      • Open a new message or reply.
      • Select Editor > Editor Settings.
      • Turn Autocorrect off.
    2. If a specific name is being changed repeatedly, add or remove entries in the AutoCorrect list in Outlook on Windows:
      • Go to the AutoCorrect tab.
      • To remove a bad replacement, type the word in Replace, select the entry, and select Delete.
      • To add a preferred entry, type the text in Replace, type the correct text in With, and select Add.
    3. Proofing settings can ignore some categories such as uppercase words, numbers, and internet addresses, but that applies to spelling checking behavior, not a rule to disable AutoCorrect for capitalized proper nouns.

    If the issue is names like Veen being changed to Even, the practical options supported here are:

    • turn AutoCorrect off in new Outlook, or
    • remove or adjust the specific AutoCorrect entry on Windows.
    AI-generated content may be incorrect. Read our transparency notes for more information.

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