Microsoft Word

Microsoft Word
Other namesMulti-Tool Word
Developer(s)Microsoft
Initial releaseOctober 25, 1983 (1983-10-25)
Stable release(s)
Latest versions (365 and Office)
  • Microsoft 365 & Retail[a] (Windows)2503 (Build 18623.20208) / 17 April 2025 (2025-04-17)[1][2]
    Microsoft 365 (Mac)16.96.0 (Build 25041326) / 15 April 2025 (2025-04-15)[3]
    Office 2021 (LTSC)2108 (Build 14332.21017) / 8 April 2025 (2025-04-08)[2]
    Office 2019 (LTSC)1808 (Build 10417.20007) / 8 April 2025 (2025-04-08)[4]

Latest versions (standalone app)
  • WindowsMay 2025 Update (19.2505.37051.0) / 9 May 2025 (2025-05-09)[5]
    Android16.0 (Build 18730.20068) / 21 April 2025 (2025-04-21)[6][7]
    iOS2.96.3 / 5 May 2025 (2025-05-05)[8]
Written inC++ (back-end),[9] Objective-C (API/UI on Mac)[9]
Operating systemMicrosoft Windows,[10] macOS, Android, iOS (current versions)
PlatformIA-32, x86-64, Arm, Arm64
PredecessorMulti-Tool Word or WordPad
TypeWord processor
LicenseTrialware
Websitemicrosoft.com/en-us/microsoft-365/word

Microsoft Word is a word processing program developed by Microsoft. It was first released on October 25, 1983,[11] under the name Multi-Tool Word for Xenix systems.[12][13][14] Subsequent versions were later written for several other platforms including: IBM PCs running DOS (1983), Apple Macintosh running the Classic Mac OS (1985), AT&T UNIX PC (1985), Atari ST (1988), OS/2 (1989), Microsoft Windows (1989), SCO Unix (1990), Handheld PC (1996), Pocket PC (2000), macOS (2001), Web browsers (2010), iOS (2014), and Android (2015).

Microsoft Word has been the de facto standard word processing software since the 1990s when it eclipsed WordPerfect.[15] Commercial versions of Word are licensed as a standalone product or as a component of Microsoft Office, which can be purchased with a perpetual license, as part of the Microsoft 365 suite as a subscription, or as a one-time purchase with Office 2024.[16]


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  1. ^ "Release notes for Current Channel". Microsoft Learn. Retrieved April 22, 2025.
  2. ^ a b "Update history for Office LTSC 2021 and Office 2021". Microsoft Learn. Retrieved April 22, 2025.
  3. ^ "Update history for Office for Mac". Microsoft Learn. Retrieved April 22, 2025.
  4. ^ "Update history for Office 2016 C2R and Office 2019". Microsoft Learn. Retrieved April 22, 2025.
  5. ^ "Microsoft 365 Copilot". Microsoft Apps. Retrieved May 9, 2025.
  6. ^
  7. ^
  8. ^
  9. ^ a b "C++ in MS Office". cppcon. July 17, 2014. Archived from the original on November 7, 2019. Retrieved June 25, 2019.
  10. ^ "System requirements for Office". Office.com. Microsoft. Archived from the original on March 30, 2019. Retrieved March 30, 2019.
  11. ^ "Version 1.0 of today's most popular applications, a visual tour – Pingdom Royal". Pingdom. June 17, 2009. Archived from the original on August 13, 2018. Retrieved April 12, 2016.
  12. ^ A. Allen, Roy (October 2001). "Chapter 12: Microsoft in the 1980s" (PDF). A History of the Personal Computer: The People and the Technology (1st ed.). Allan Publishing. pp. 12/25–12/26. ISBN 978-0-9689108-0-1. Retrieved November 7, 2010.
  13. ^ "Microsoft Office online, Getting to know you...again: The Ribbon". Archived from the original on May 11, 2011.
  14. ^ "The history of branding, Microsoft history". Archived from the original on May 28, 2009.
  15. ^ Till A. Heilmann (2023). "The Beginnings of Word Processing: A Historical Account". Digital Writing Technologies in Higher Education. pp. 3–14. doi:10.1007/978-3-031-36033-6_1. ISBN 978-3-031-36032-9.
  16. ^ Microsoft https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoft-365/p/office-home-2024/cfq7ttc0pqvj#:~:text=Office%202024%20is%20a%20one,with%20a%20Microsoft%20365%20subscription. {{cite web}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)

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