I'm trying this with Word 365, but i think this would work with your version.

Highlight your first word. Go to Insert /Text Box/Draw Text Box. For me at least, the default is a plain fairly tight bordered box with a thin black border and no fill. Check that the box's wrapping is set to "tight". Then highlight the next word and press F4 to repeat the application of the text box. If you have a whole lot of text to do that way, you might want to write a macro.

Another option I can think of might be making a table with empty cells between every other word but that might be awkward to construct.