Control AutoInput and AutoCorrect in LibreOffice Calc

Use Tools → AutoInput for suggestions drawn from the current column. Use AutoCorrect Options for replacement rules and capitalization changes. Turning off one does not turn off the other, and neither is the same as filling a series or enforcing valid entries.

This recipe follows Calc Guide 26.2, Chapter 2, with Help labelled 26.8 checked on 23 October 2026. Menu directions use the English standard interface on Windows/Linux. The 26.2 guide places AutoCorrect Options directly under Tools; current shared Help writes Tools → AutoCorrect → AutoCorrect Options. Use the route present in your installed interface. The expected strings below were checked independently, but native typing, dialog appearance and persistence were not executed.

First identify the change

What you observe	Control to inspect	What it does not establish
A highlighted ending appears while typing a familiar label	Tools → AutoInput	That the label is required or correct
A typed abbreviation becomes a longer phrase	AutoCorrect Options → Replace	That the phrase came from the current column
A first letter or pair of capitals changes	AutoCorrect Options → Options and Exceptions	That disabling AutoInput will prevent it
A date-like entry becomes a date	Input interpretation and cell format	That a replacement rule is responsible

Work in a new ODS file. Note the original AutoInput setting and any AutoCorrect options you change. These settings are not merely cell contents: closing the practice workbook is not a reliable way to undo profile changes. Do not delete pre-existing replacement entries or exceptions.

Test column completion separately

1. In A1 type Stage. In A2 type Intake; in A3 type Review; in A4 type Dispatch.
2. Ensure Tools → AutoInput is checked. In A5 type Rev and inspect the highlighted completion before accepting it. The expected completed label is Review.
3. Press Enter to accept. Re-select A5 and verify the entire stored text, not only its first letters.
4. Turn AutoInput off. In A6 type Rev and finish the entry. Expect the literal three-character text Rev, not Review.
5. Restore AutoInput to its original setting.

For an explicit list of existing text entries, select a blank cell below these labels and use Alt+Down Arrow, or right-click and choose Selection List. Choose an existing entry deliberately. This is a convenience list, not a validity rule: it does not by itself prohibit a new label.

The AutoInput Help documents a scan limit of 2,000 cells or 200 different strings; do not expect an exhaustive list from an arbitrarily large column. The guide and Help describe capitalization differently, so this recipe makes no case-matching guarantee. When exact case matters, switch AutoInput off temporarily, type the intended text and verify it.

Add one reversible replacement

Use a distinctive token rather than a common word so the experiment cannot silently change ordinary writing.

1. Temporarily turn AutoInput off to isolate the replacement test.
2. Open AutoCorrect Options → Replace. Note Replacements and exceptions for language; use the language of the test text consistently.
3. Check that zzshipnote is not already present. If it is, choose another unique token rather than overwrite it.
4. Enter zzshipnote in Replace and Dispatch confirmed in With, then click New. On Options, inspect Use replacement table and enable it if needed, recording its original state. Confirm with OK.
5. In B2 type zzshipnote, then a space to finish the word. Inspect the result before committing the cell. The expected replacement text is Dispatch confirmed; a typed trailing space is separate from that phrase.
6. In B3 type an unrelated token, zzothernote, followed by a space. It should not become the dispatch phrase. If it changes, investigate other configured rules rather than credit this one.

The Replace documentation explains New, editing an existing pair, language selection and Delete. Shared Help also discusses Writer-style While Typing controls; this recipe does not assume that control exists in Calc’s menu.

To remove the experiment, return to the same language’s Replace list, select only the zzshipnote pair and click Delete, then OK. Test the token in B4: it should now remain literal. Existing B2 text is not retroactively restored by deleting a rule. Undo the cell edit immediately when appropriate, or re-enter its intended text. Restore every option you changed, including AutoInput.

Keep intentional capitalization with an exception

Exceptions have narrower jobs than replacement pairs. Abbreviations (no subsequent capital) protects the word after an abbreviation ending in a period. Words with TWo INitial CApitals or sMALL iNITIAL protects an intended word form. An exception is not a general “never change this text” rule.

For a disposable test, first record whether QAtoken already exists in the relevant language’s capitalization-exception list. If absent, type it there and click New, then OK. With the corresponding capitalization correction enabled, test QAtoken followed by a space in an empty cell and inspect the case. Remove only the newly added exception afterward and restore the original correction option. If it was already present, leave it untouched and do not claim you created it.

The Exceptions Help documents an AutoInclude option that can learn from immediately undone corrections. Because its shared documentation contains application-specific conditions, inspect the actual exception list rather than assuming Undo changed only the cell or that automatic learning occurred. Prefer explicit New/Delete for this test. Reset concerns pending tab changes, not a guaranteed factory reset or a way to recover an entry deleted and saved earlier.

Troubleshooting and finishing

• A correction surprises you: immediately use Edit → Undo and read the resulting cell. Reopen the relevant rule list before continuing bulk entry.
• The test does nothing: check the text’s language, replacement-table option and exact token spelling. Do not delete unrelated rules or reset the whole profile.
• A number-like identifier becomes a date: that is a separate input-conversion issue. Deactivating Automatic Changes documents a leading apostrophe for intentional text; confirm that text is appropriate before using it for numeric data.
• The replacement persists elsewhere: check that you removed the pair under the correct language and saved the dialog. Do not assume settings travel with the ODS file.

Save and reopen the workbook to check its stored strings. Separately reopen the options to confirm cleanup; reopening a workbook does not prove a profile setting was restored. For repeated sequences use Fill Series and custom lists. Formatting labels is covered by readable cell formatting, not by either typing aid.