iPad cursor with word selection weird behavior

Thanks for the reply, igotquestions_23.

It looks like "Check Spelling" is the feature that's causing the word to be underlined. The way you described the behavior of this feature sounds like it's normal. Try disabling "Check Spelling" to see if that helps to allow you to change the word as you prefer.

You can change this in Settings > General > Keyboards > Check Spelling.

You're also welcome to submit feedback about how this feature works to Apple directly: Product Feedback - Apple

All the best.

I’ve noticed the same issue. This community specialist doesn’t seem to understand what you’re saying, but I do. The only way I could get it to stop is by disabling both Auto Correct and Check Spelling in the Keyboard settings. Unfortunately, that’s not ideal. I would prefer those to be enabled AND be able to move the cursor without it selecting the whole word automatically. This feels like a bug, not a feature.

Hi igotquestions_23,

Thanks for posting in Apple Support Communities. If this happens only when your iPad is connected to the trackpad, we'd recommend checking your trackpad settings. Check out the following from Use a Bluetooth mouse or trackpad with your iPad - Apple Support. The secondary click setting may be impacting your results since you mentioned it behaves like you would expect with right click.

"Adjust trackpad settings

To change how your Bluetooth trackpad works, go to Settings > General > Trackpad. On the screen that appears, you can adjust these settings:

• To adjust how quickly the pointer moves when you use the trackpad, drag the Tracking Speed slider.
• To make content track the movement of your fingers when you scroll, turn on Natural Scrolling.
• To make a tap on the trackpad register as a click, turn on Tap to Click.
• To have a two-finger click or tap behave as a secondary click, turn on Two Finger Secondary Click. 

In iPadOS, a secondary trackpad click acts like a long press on the iPad touchscreen, or a Control-click (or right-click) on a Mac. For example, when you use a secondary trackpad click on an iPad app icon, its contextual menu appears.

You can also perform a secondary click on iPad with any pointing device by holding the Control key as you click."

Kind regards.

Hi igotquestions_23,

It sounds like you'd prefer to correct spelling manually rather than using predictive text to correct the spelling, is that right?

If so, you can disable predictive text as outlined here: Use predictive text on iPad - Apple Support

"Turn off predictive text

• With an onscreen keyboard: Touch and hold  or , tap Keyboard Settings, then turn off Predictive.
• With an external keyboard: Go to Settings  > General > Keyboard, then turn off Predictive.

When you turn off predictive text, iPad may still try to suggest corrections for misspelled words. To accept a correction, enter a space or punctuation, or tap Return. To reject a correction, tap the “x.” If you reject the same suggestion a few times, iPad stops suggesting it."

We hope this helps you.

Take care!

I’ve run into the same problem on my iPad ever since updating to 17.1.1. Every time I try to move my cursor, it selects a word, offers corrections (even misspelled corrections). If I tap again, it selects the whole word like I’m trying to change it. It’s near impossible to move the cursor to a new location. The only way I’ve found I can move the cursor is to do the long press on the space bar. It’s driving me crazy and makes me want to stop using my iPad.

I’ve been seeing this on iPhone and it is slowing down my writing. I think what’s happening is when you type with Auto-Correction on, the keyboard wants to give you the capability to undo the autocorrection and revert back to the original word. (For example, when the original was in fact correct.) The way this is implemented is by having suggestions pop up if you click anywhere in the autocorrected word. But it’s nearly impossible to place the cursor in the space between two words (for example to insert a missing word) without clicking on a character in the surrounding words, which would cause that word to get selected (turn blue) and suggestions to pop up. This is not the desired outcome.

Sometimes less is more. Maybe we don’t need the pop up suggestions.

I agree. Did it come with the latest os upgrade. I cant recall, so many of them, but this is a really recent annoying problem, i get foreign language punctuation and characters and letters inserted between whole normally spelled word like im typing to fasr or something with the cursor, maybe theres a cursor speed control?

When I am typing a text on my IPhone 6 the spelling comes out all mixed up (intermittently)

Does anyone have the same problem

Battery level is at 75%

Can this have anything to do with it although just think it does not.

This DOES NOT only happen with a keyboard. I have the same problem and I do not have a keyboard attached. I have already turned off predictive text. It still happens. It appears Apple’s solutions are all coming from Bots/AI. Their solution is always to turn off useful features when the problem is a NEW problem from an old feature (that didn’t used to cause this problem)

Oh I 100% agree. Seems like a bug since you have to turn off multiple settings to get it to stop doing ONE thing.

This appears to have rolled out to the iPhone now too. It’s driving me mad. Were you able to get a solution to it other than turning off both spell check and predictive text?