Does this problem occur on all sites, even the simple textarea boxes on this site? Certainly some sites disable spell-checking and override the right-click (Ctrl+click) context menu with their own menu, but hopefully that is rare and you can at least check your dictionaries on the form here.

Hi jscher2000,

Thanks for responding. Yes the problem is occuring right here in this response box, too.

More background on this problem: Machine: MacBook Pro running OS X El Capitan.

Other symptoms noted: I have a general problem with spellcheck, the one that's integral to the OS system (apparently - who knew?). It surfaced when I purchased Final Draft 10 for my BA screenwriting project and spellcheck doesn't work in that. I let the FD people have both barrels but it seems their software invokes the integral OS spellchecker. It was only then that I realised that spellchecking has also disappeared in Firefox and Gmail (under Firefox), but programs like CELTX, MS Word and Scrivner all seem fine – I can only assume they have their own internal spellcheck system.

Is it possible that Firefox also invokes the integral OS spellcheck system? If so, perhaps that is where the answer lies?

Hi SWkid, I think Firefox is only capable of using its built-in spell-checker, which is from an open source project called Hunspel.

If your Firefox cannot display the appropriate right-click context menu for an editing field -- so you cannot see the "Check Spelling" item anywhere on the menu -- that makes it difficult to investigate and manage this feature, so that part has me really puzzled.

Do you have a dictionary installed and selected?

You can see which dictionary is selected if you right-click in a text area and open the Languages sub menu. At least one dictionary should be installed and have a check mark to indicate that it is selected.

• open the "Add Dictionaries" link to install a dictionary if you do not have one.

The spelling checker is enabled if [X] "Check Spelling" in the right-click context menu has a checkmark.

You can enable or disable spell checking globally:

• Options/Preferences -> General: Browsing: "Check my spelling as I type"

You can look here for dictionaries:

• https://addons.mozilla.org/firefox/language-tools/

You can check the layout.spellcheckDefault pref on the about:config page. You can reset the layout.spellcheckDefault pref via the right-click context menu.

Thanks jshcr2000 for your input.

Apologies for time disparity in my responses. I'm in the UK.

Hi Cor-el,

1) The correct box is not appearing when I right-click/control-click in a text area. That's part of my problem. 2) Spell checking is enabled in General. On the Firefox version I have [up-to-date: V 58.0.2 (64-bit)] it's listed under the heading 'Language' , not Browsing, but it is ticked. 3) BINGO! (I've been typing these answers as I tried the steps) Your addons link was the answer: The Dictionary/language pack I had installed: "English (GB) Language Pack" was the source of the problem. I now see it has only 2 stars - I'm not surprised, that's 2 too many! ;) I've ripped that out and installed "British English Dictionary (Marco Pinto)" and functionality has returned. Phew!

Thanks a million, Cor-el buddy!

Note that there is a difference between a language pack and a dictionary. A language pack provides translations for strings (labels) in the user interface. You need to install the spell check dictionary separately for locales that do not include a dictionary and that includes a lot of Firefox locales because licensing issue prevent Mozilla from including the dictionary as part of the Firefox installer.

Thanks cor-el but that conveys no meaning to me at all. Would you mind translating that into the implications for my UK circumstances, please?

Are you saying that I need both?

Apologies if I'm being thick, but spell checking does seem to be working fine without the language pack. I'm disinclined to reinstate that, given that it seems to have been the cause of my problem.

You can install and use both language pack and dictionary. The language pack works independently from the dictionary.

The en-GB language pack for instance spells colour and not color in the user interface.

• Options/Preferences -> General: Fonts & Colours -> Colours
• Options/Preferences -> General: Fonts & Colors -> Colors

The en-GB dictionary flags color as wrong and colour as correct (hopefully).