PDF Conversion Issues

How to Select Document Language for PDF to Word Conversion

Jason Miller Oct 22, 2026 868 views

Question details

The user needs to select the correct document language during PDF to Word conversion to ensure special characters are properly recognized.

How to Select Document Language for PDF to Word Conversion

Product: PDF Converters / Adobe Acrobat
Device & OS: not provided
Scenario: Converting a foreign language PDF (e.g., German) to a Word document using a PDF conversion tool.
Observed behavior: Special characters like umlauts may not be recognized correctly unless the specific document language is set before initiating the conversion.

Before you start

Identify the primary language used in your PDF document to ensure the Optical Character Recognition (OCR) engine applies the correct character set during conversion.

Solution 1Recommended

Change Document Language in Adobe Acrobat Reader

Adjust the document language settings directly within the desktop application before exporting.

Setting the correct language in the desktop client helps the built-in text recognition engine map special characters accurately when converting to Word format.

Open your PDF

Launch Adobe Acrobat Reader and open the PDF file you wish to convert.

Locate the Export tool

Navigate to the right-hand tool pane and click on the 'Export PDF' option.

Modify language settings

Under the 'Document Language' section, click on the 'Change' link.

Select the correct language

Choose your required language (e.g., German) from the provided list and continue with the conversion to Microsoft Word.

Change Document Language in Adobe Acrobat Reader

Conversion Accuracy: Selecting the exact document language ensures that special characters such as umlauts and accents are perfectly preserved in the final Word document.

Solution 2

Select Language on the Export PDF Website

Set the language preference when using the online PDF export tool.

Convert Multilingual PDFs Easily

Convert Multilingual PDFs to Word with WPS Office

WPS Office offers a powerful PDF to Word converter with built-in OCR technology that accurately recognizes multiple languages, preserving your original formatting and special characters effortlessly.

1. Open WPS Office: Launch WPS Office and navigate to the 'PDF' tab on the main interface.
2. Select PDF to Word: Click on the 'PDF to Word' tool located in the upper toolbar.
3. Add your document: Drag and drop your foreign-language PDF into the conversion dialog box.
4. Convert the file: Adjust any necessary OCR language settings if prompted, select your desired output path, and click 'Convert' to generate your Word document.

Accurate OCR engine supporting multiple global languagesMaintains original document layout and formattingHigh compatibility with Microsoft Word (.docx) formatsFast processing for batch PDF conversions

microsoft office alternative - wps office

Frequently Asked Questions

Why did my PDF to Word conversion turn special characters into symbols?

This typically happens when the Optical Character Recognition (OCR) engine defaults to English. Setting the correct document language allows the software to identify special characters like umlauts or accents correctly.

Can I select multiple languages for a single PDF conversion?

Most PDF converters require you to select a primary document language. If your document contains multiple languages, select the one that corresponds to the majority of the text or the one containing the most special characters.

Does WPS Office support OCR for non-English PDFs?

Yes, WPS Office features an advanced OCR tool that supports multiple languages, ensuring accurate text extraction and conversion from scanned PDFs in various languages directly into fully editable Word documents.

PDF Troubleshooting