How to Fix Microsoft Word Read Aloud Skipping Text Around Parentheses
Question details
The user needs to fix an issue where the Read Aloud feature in Microsoft Word skips over text or jumps between paragraphs when encountering parentheses or citations.
- Product
- Microsoft Word
- Device & OS
- not provided
- Scenario
- Using the Read Aloud feature to review academic or referenced documents containing citations generated by the Mendeley plug-in.
- Observed behavior
- Read Aloud skips sentences around parentheses when the Mendeley citation add-in is enabled. Additionally, the application forces the use of online voices and lacks legacy offline voice options.
Before troubleshooting, create a new blank document, type some text with manually entered parentheses, and test Read Aloud to see if the issue is specific to your current document or an active add-in.
Update Microsoft 365 and Isolate the Mendeley Add-in
Updating Office and temporarily disabling the Mendeley add-in will help determine if the problem stems from a compatibility issue between Word's online voices and the plug-in.
Because third-party citation managers actively modify document fields, they can sometimes interfere with Word's built-in text-to-speech engine. Installing the latest Office build can resolve known bugs, while disabling the add-in confirms the source of the conflict.
Open Microsoft Word, click on 'File' in the top-left corner, and select 'Account' from the side menu. Click on 'Update Options' and select 'Update Now' to ensure you are on the latest Current Channel version.
Go to 'File' > 'Options' > 'Add-ins'. At the bottom of the window, select 'COM Add-ins' from the Manage dropdown and click 'Go'. Uncheck the Mendeley add-in and click 'OK'.
Restart Word, open a document containing parentheses (without generating new citations through Mendeley), and initiate the Read Aloud feature to verify if the text is read correctly.
Contact Mendeley Support for Compatibility Updates
If the skipping issue is strictly isolated to the Mendeley add-in, the plug-in requires a bug fix from the developer to become fully compatible with Word's online voices.
Enjoy Seamless Document Reading with WPS Office
If add-in conflicts and unchangeable online voice settings in Microsoft Word are disrupting your study or work, consider switching to WPS Office. It provides a robust, highly compatible environment for editing academic documents without the heavy, restrictive background services.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why does Word's Read Aloud feature skip text in parentheses?
This usually happens when third-party plug-ins, such as citation managers (like Mendeley), insert specialized fields into the document. Word's text-to-speech engine may struggle to process these custom fields, causing it to skip the surrounding text or jump paragraphs.
Can I switch back to offline voices for Read Aloud in Microsoft 365?
In newer updates of Microsoft 365, Word defaults to online neural voices to provide better speech quality. While disconnecting from the internet may pause the feature entirely for some users, managing legacy text-to-speech settings must be done directly through your Windows OS Settings under Time & Language > Speech.
How do I confirm an add-in is causing my Word problems?
You can launch Microsoft Word in Safe Mode by holding the CTRL key while opening the application. Safe Mode loads Word without any custom add-ins. If the Read Aloud feature works perfectly in Safe Mode, an add-in is likely responsible for the conflict.
