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You can dictate a comment about a selection in a Word document, document, spreadsheet, PDF, or presentation. Use this when you want to explain a change or ask a question about a specific part of an asset. Your speech becomes an editable draft attached to the selection. You review and submit the comment separately.

How to dictate a comment on a selection and post it

  1. Select one sentence
  2. Start dictation
  3. Speak your comment
  4. Finish dictation
  5. Review the draft
  6. Post the comment

Athena 101 lesson: Work inside your Office files (broader walkthrough)

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Dictate a comment

  1. Open the asset and select the content you want to discuss. Highlight text in a Word document, document, or PDF. Select cells in a spreadsheet, or select a slide or shape in a presentation.
  2. Keep that asset active. Start dictation by pressing Control twice on macOS, or Ctrl twice on Windows. Allow microphone access if your browser asks.
  3. Speak your comment. Review the transcription and correct any words that need changing.
  4. Select Done to finish dictation. Pressing Enter or tapping Control once also finishes it. Press Esc, Delete or x to cancel. When the selection supports comments, the transcription opens as a comment draft. The message Comment drafted from selection confirms this.
  5. Review the draft and its location. In Word, select Comment to post it. In the other supported comment editors, use Submit (Enter). You can edit the draft before submitting it.

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Good to know

You need access that lets you add comments. In Word, you need edit access and an editable document mode. Suggesting mode works; viewing mode and read-only documents do not. Dictation also needs to be available in your deployment. Select the content before you start dictation. An empty selection does not create an anchored comment. If Word text changes while you dictate and the original selection no longer matches, the transcription falls back to ordinary dictation. It may insert at a cursor or go to the clipboard and chat composer. Check where the text lands before continuing. Finishing dictation does not post a comment. The draft remains yours to review and submit.