Thesaurus in PowerPoint 365 for Windows

Are you facing a literary block, and are looking for the right word? The correct word is somewhere in your subconscious but you cannot recollect it now! In that case, do you know a similar word, and want to try your luck using a thesaurus? Did you know that PowerPoint already has a thesaurus that can help with alternative or opposite words?

Follow these steps to access the Thesaurus in PowerPoint 365 for Windows:

1. Open an existing presentation or create a new one. Optionally, select a word on your slide. Now, access the Review tab of the Ribbon. Click the Thesaurus button, as shown highlighted in red within Figure 1, below.
2. 
   Figure 1: Click the Thesaurus button

Is the Thesaurus Button Grayed Out?

The Thesaurus button is grayed out unless some sort of text container is selected on your slide. Text containers include text placeholders, text boxes, and even shapes. It's probably best that you select the individual word within your text container that you want to use the thesaurus for.

3. Alternatively, select a word, and press the Shift + F7 keyboard shortcut.


PowerPoint Keyboard Shortcuts

Do you want more keyboard shortcuts?

Explore our PowerPoint Keyboard Shortcuts and Sequences Ebook that is updated for all PowerPoint versions.

2. Either way, you summon the Thesaurus Task Pane as shown in Figure 2, below. If you did not select a word on your slide before, type any word in the area shown highlighted in red within Figure 2. Next, click the Start Searching button, highlighted in blue within Figure 2.
3. 
   Figure 2: Thesaurus Task Pane in PowerPoint
4. The results you see in the Thesaurus Task Pane are sourced from the thesaurus of the language being used for the selected text container. If needed, you can use a thesaurus from another language or locale by clicking on the Thesaurus Language option, highlighted in green within Figure 2, above. Doing so brings up the Thesaurus Language drop-down list, as shown in Figure 3, below. You'll see all available thesauri in this list, and can choose whichever one you want to use.
5. 
   Figure 3: Thesaurus Language drop-down list
6. You can also select a word on your slide, and right-click. In the ensuing menu, choose the Synonyms option, as shown highlighted in red within Figure 4, below. The resultant sub-menu shows some synonyms, as shown highlighted in blue within Figure 4. You can click on any of the synonyms to replace the selected word on your slide, or you can also click the Thesaurus option, as shown highlighted in green within Figure 4.
7. 
   Figure 4: Right-click to access the Thesaurus
3. If you chose the last option, you'll end up with a list of related words within the Thesaurus Task Pane, as shown highlighted in red within Figure 5, below.
4. 
   Figure 5: Thesaurus Task Pane with a list of related words
4. Once you find the word you need, hover the cursor on that word to see a down-arrow button, as shown highlighted in blue within Figure 5, above. Click this down-arrow, and you'll see the following options:

Insert

5. This option inserts the word at the cursor position on the active slide.

Copy

6. This option copies the word to the clipboard so that it can be pasted wherever you want (even outside PowerPoint).
5. Choose any of the options to make your text content richer. Save your presentation often.