Word cannot open the file because the file format does not match the file extension.

Question

I was working on a .docx file and Word suddenly quit.&nbsp; I looked in Word Help to find the recover file and found it.&nbsp; However, I cannot open it through Finder or Word.&nbsp; I also tried to change the file extension to .zip and that didn't work either.&nbsp; I am working on a MacBook Pro (late 2013, retina, OS Catalina).&nbsp; I would really like to recover it because I was at the end of an extensive redlining process.&nbsp; Any other suggestions for retrieving it?&nbsp;&nbsp;

notcoolyet · Answer

&nbsp;Change the extension of your file to ".doc"&nbsp;&nbsp;

dow · Answer

Thank you - worked for me in Word 16 (Ventura, 13.2)

kidd_ip · Answer

cbmattick&nbsp;Are you able to open in OLD format (*.doc) and copy the content to new WORD and save as docx?

dow · Answer

After changing the extension to .doc, the AutoRecovered file happily opened in Word. I then just needed to do a 'Save As' in .docx format (and change extension to .docx), and file now behaving normally.

Forum Discussion

Word cannot open the file because the file format does not match the file extension.

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