Sounds like the worksheet is protected; that will disable Spelling
Not sure of the logic in this - I speak as a terrible speller.
best wishes
--
Bernard Liengme
Microsoft Excel MVP
http://people.stfx.ca/bliengme

"Shawn" wrote in message
...
I am assigned to use an excel template from the federal government; the
proofing option to check spelling is not operating (it shows up as a grey
image). Can the spell check option be turned on to be able to use it?