READ ALOUD keeps stopping mid sentence

Question

READ ALOUD keeps stopping mid sentence

big bob 45

since the last update, (about a week ago) MS Word keeps stopping mid sentence while listening to READ ALOUD.

Help

big bob 45 Reputation points

2025-10-17T11:18:17.3266667+00:00

still happening
Thomas4-N 13,150 Reputation points Microsoft External Staff Moderator

2025-10-18T13:23:58.6233333+00:00

Hi, I understand this can be frustrating. At this point, the best approach is to keep Word and Windows updated regularly, as updates often include improvements for features like Read Aloud.

Sorry for the inconvenience, and thank you for your patience.
Mychele Goodwin 5 Reputation points

2025-12-11T14:40:37.3733333+00:00

As someone having this same issue, it's really quite unacceptable that your best "advice" is "keep everything updated". I can attest for myself that everything IS in fact updated and has nothing to do with the issue. Can you PLEASE find an ACTUAL solution? It's irresponsible to be this big in your industry and you can't fix a simple issue.
Thomas4-N 13,150 Reputation points Microsoft External Staff Moderator

2025-12-12T14:34:34.2033333+00:00

Hello Mychele Goodwin,

Just to clarify, I’m just a fellow user here, not Microsoft staff. I’ve already shared everything I know that might help, and I don’t have further suggestions to add.

If you want more input, please consider creating a new thread - it usually brings in fresh eyes from other community members or advisors.

Hopefully the community or later discussions can bring more clarity for everyone.
Kaitlynn Allen 0 Reputation points

2026-01-11T11:32:26.56+00:00

I just updated my Word, and Re-aloud worked for all of 15 seconds, and then stopped mid sentence again.

Answer recommended by moderator

3 additional answers

Your answer

big bob 45 Reputation points

2025-10-17T11:18:17.3266667+00:00

still happening
Thomas4-N 13,150 Reputation points Microsoft External Staff Moderator

2025-10-18T13:23:58.6233333+00:00

Hi, I understand this can be frustrating. At this point, the best approach is to keep Word and Windows updated regularly, as updates often include improvements for features like Read Aloud.

Sorry for the inconvenience, and thank you for your patience.
Mychele Goodwin 5 Reputation points

2025-12-11T14:40:37.3733333+00:00

As someone having this same issue, it's really quite unacceptable that your best "advice" is "keep everything updated". I can attest for myself that everything IS in fact updated and has nothing to do with the issue. Can you PLEASE find an ACTUAL solution? It's irresponsible to be this big in your industry and you can't fix a simple issue.
Thomas4-N 13,150 Reputation points Microsoft External Staff Moderator

2025-12-12T14:34:34.2033333+00:00

Hello Mychele Goodwin,

Just to clarify, I’m just a fellow user here, not Microsoft staff. I’ve already shared everything I know that might help, and I don’t have further suggestions to add.

If you want more input, please consider creating a new thread - it usually brings in fresh eyes from other community members or advisors.

Hopefully the community or later discussions can bring more clarity for everyone.
Kaitlynn Allen 0 Reputation points

2026-01-11T11:32:26.56+00:00

I just updated my Word, and Re-aloud worked for all of 15 seconds, and then stopped mid sentence again.

Answer 1

I can verify that this happens on my system as well. I tried the suggestions in both of the answers.

Suggested workaround:

Put the Read Aloud command on your QAT. https://addbalance.com/word/QATmodification.htm#PageStart
Use the Keyboard Shortcut to the Read Aloud Command. (Ctrl+Alt+Spacebar) Or, add your own shortcut. https://addbalance.com/articles/Assigning%20Keyboard%20Shortcuts%20in%20Microsoft%20Word%202007-2024%20(365).htm You can find it under Commands Not In the Ribbon and in All Commands.

Do use the Feedback mechanisms!

This is a user-to-user support forum.

Microsoft is not hearing about your problems from what you post here. You are discussing a problem with your fellow users here. We can give good advice about how to work with Word as it is and give suggestions for making it work properly.

Designers and their supervisors do see feedback. (You will almost certainly not get a direct response to that feedback but they do see it.)

Here is more about that:

https://answers.microsoft.com/en-us/msoffice/forum/all/giving-feedback-on-microsoft-word-or-other/8df81a9b-84aa-46ef-bf88-24fb7fec96ba

I suggest using the public feedback portal so other users can see your feedback, comment and vote. If you want, you can post the URL of your feedback with your question here to lead others with the same problem to your feedback. Be the “squeaky wheel” that gets fixed!

Answer 2

Thomas4-N 13,150 Microsoft External Staff Moderator

Hello big bob, thank you for reaching out to Microsoft Q&A forum.

If Read Aloud in Microsoft Word keeps stopping mid-sentence, here is a solution that has worked for many users:

Press Windows + R, type regedit, and press Enter.
Navigate to: HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Office\16.0\Word\Options
In the right pane, find the entry named ReadAloudSignInErrorCount.
Delete this entry or right-click to rename it to: ReadAloudSignInErrorCount-1
Close the editor, restart Word and test if the Read Aloud works properly

This registry reset forces Word to reinitialize the Read Aloud feature.

I hope this helps fix the issue!

If the answer is helpful, please click "Accept Answer" and kindly upvote it. If you have extra questions about this answer, please click "Comment".

Note: Please follow the steps in our documentation to enable e-mail notifications if you want to receive the related email notification for this thread.

big bob 45 Reputation points

2025-10-10T11:09:26.7+00:00

That solution worked to prevent the app from reverting to the old voices.

I'm now trying to prevent the app from halting the read mid sentence.
Thomas4-N 13,150 Reputation points Microsoft External Staff Moderator

2025-10-11T08:29:43.02+00:00

Hi, thanks for clarifying. I apologize if my earlier suggestion wasn’t fully aligned with your issue. If you haven’t tried that registry fix yet, it’s still worth a shot since it can reset the feature and improve stability.

If that doesn’t help, please keep Word and Windows updated regularly to benefit from ongoing improvements. Sorry for the inconvenience, and thank you for your understanding.
Kaitlynn Allen 0 Reputation points

2026-01-11T11:19:58.7366667+00:00

I've done this alleged fix twice, and it has solved nothing.
Thomas4-N 13,150 Reputation points Microsoft External Staff Moderator

2026-01-11T12:47:50.3+00:00

Hello Kaitlynn Allen,

Please check out Charles Kenyon's summary. He has done extensive researching and testing to come to the conclusion.

Answer 3

Paul A. 5

I’m experiencing an issue with the Read Aloud feature in Microsoft Word. It often stops after just a few words instead of continuing as expected. Occasionally, it works correctly, but most of the time it does not. My IT team has also encountered roadblocks while trying to resolve this.

Any help would be appreciated. I used to use this all the time.

Charles Kenyon 166.1K Reputation points Volunteer Moderator

2026-01-07T20:37:22.8+00:00

@PFA ATL

Did you try either of the suggestions?
Charles Kenyon 166.1K Reputation points Volunteer Moderator

2026-01-07T20:49:28.6333333+00:00

@PFA ATL

Disregard my previous post. This is happening on my system as well, and I did try the suggestions.

This is a user-to-user support forum.

Microsoft is not hearing about your problems from what you post here. You are discussing a problem with your fellow users here. We can give good advice about how to work with Word as it is and give suggestions for making it work properly.

Designers and their supervisors do see feedback. (You will almost certainly not get a direct response to that feedback but they do see it.)

Here is more about that:

https://answers.microsoft.com/en-us/msoffice/forum/all/giving-feedback-on-microsoft-word-or-other/8df81a9b-84aa-46ef-bf88-24fb7fec96ba

I suggest using the public feedback portal so other users can see your feedback, comment and vote. If you want, you can post the URL of your feedback with your question here to lead others with the same problem to your feedback. Be the “squeaky wheel” that gets fixed!
Paul A. 5 Reputation points

2026-01-07T20:59:49.4333333+00:00

Thank you for taking the time and also providing better details about the process

Answer 4

John Oliver 11,620 Independent Advisor

Hello big bob, I totally get how frustrating it is when Read Aloud keeps stopping mid-sentence, especially if you're using it regularly for smooth and uninterrupted reading.

One thing that’s worked for some users is adjusting the voice settings. Sometimes Word reverts to older voices, which can cause the reading to halt unexpectedly. You can try going into your system’s Settings, then Time & Language, and from there, open the Speech section. Try changing the default voice, adjusting the speed, or switching the language settings to see if that helps.

Also, if you're open to exploring alternatives, you might want to check out some open-source text-to-speech languages. They can offer more flexibility and might work better depending on your setup.

Hope this helps

Kind Regards,

John Oli

big bob 45 Reputation points

2025-10-10T22:43:24.2966667+00:00

are these settings for the new AI voices or the old ones?
Kaitlynn Allen 0 Reputation points

2026-01-11T11:22:31.5166667+00:00

Totally useless suggestion that does not address mine and the OP's issue in any way.

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READ ALOUD keeps stopping mid sentence

Suggested workaround:

Do use the Feedback mechanisms!

3 additional answers

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