How do I change curly quotes to straight quotes in Word?

Turn off smart quotes, then replace every quote mark with itself. Word converts each one using your current setting, so with smart quotes off, every curly quote becomes straight. This matters for AI drafts because text pasted from ChatGPT or Copilot often brings curly quotes into a document that otherwise uses straight ones, and Remove AI Tells counts that mix as a typography tell.

Step 1: Turn off smart quotes

On Windows, go to File, Options, Proofing, AutoCorrect Options, then the AutoFormat As You Type tab, and uncheck "Straight quotes" with "smart quotes." On a Mac, go to Word, Preferences, AutoCorrect, AutoFormat As You Type.

Step 2: Replace double quotes

Press Ctrl+H. Type a double quote in Find what and a double quote in Replace with, then choose Replace All. Word finds both straight and curly versions and writes them back as straight.

Step 3: Replace apostrophes and single quotes

Do the same with a single quote in both boxes. This also fixes curly apostrophes in words like "don't."

Step 4: Decide whether to turn smart quotes back on

Leave the setting off if you want new typing to match. Curly quotes are not wrong on their own; consistent curly quotes are normal typography. The tell is a document that mixes both.

The faster option

Paste the text into the free Remove AI Tells scanner. It straightens quotes and apostrophes, swaps em dashes for commas and strips invisible characters in one pass, then you paste the clean text back into Word.