[header] How to repair a word document [title] Back up your document. [step] Even if your file is corrupt, having a duplicate means you still have a chance to recover the information in it if you should accidentally destroy the file in trying to repair it. Put this backup on a flash drive or other removable media. 
[substeps] If you have a previously saved version of the document, you may want to back it up and then open it on the same computer or another computer. If you've made few changes from the previous version to the current one, you may find it easiest to recreate the changes.