Hello Boyd,
Thank you for posting question on Microsoft Windows Forum.
Based on the issue description. It seems to be a conflict between Dark Mode and the Graphics Acceleration in Microsoft Word after that crash.
When Word crashes, it can sometimes corrupt the temporary display cache, leading to "Black on Black" text selection issues (where you highlight text but can not see the selection) or missing UI elements.
The following are some suggestions purportedly helpful for fixing this issue.
1.Toggle the Office Theme (to force Word to re-render the interface).
- Open Word. Go to File > Account. Look for Office Theme. It is likely set to "Black" or "System Setting." Change it to "Colorful" or "White." Testing by going back to your document.
- If this works, you can try switching back to "Black" or "Dark Gray" afterwards to see if the problem is gone.
2.Check the "Dark Mode" Page Color.
- Go to the View tab. Look for the Dark Mode button (usually near the "Focus" or "Immersive Reader" buttons). Click Switch Modes (sun/moon icon). This toggles the paper background between Black and White without changing the whole app theme.
3.Disable Hardware Graphics Acceleration.
- In Word, go to File > Options. Click on Advanced. Scroll down to the Display section. Check the box for "Disable hardware graphics acceleration". Also, check "Disable Slide Show hardware graphics acceleration" if available. Click OK and restart Word.
4.Run an Online Repair.
- Right-click the Start button and select Installed Apps (or Apps & Features). Search for Microsoft 365. Click the three dots (...) next to it and select Modify. Select Online Repair (Do not choose Quick Repair; it is often insufficient for display bugs). Click Repair. This might take about 10-15 minutes.
Hope the above information is helpful! If it is. Free feel to hit "Accepted" for benefitting others in community having the same issue too.