Opening exec files in OS X

I have several files that show up as grey squares with a green 'exec' in the upper left hand corner. When I get Info on these files they are indicated to be Microsoft Word files. When I open them in MS Word, they display pages of gibberish random symbols. Is there some application that can open these files easily? I have tried Word, Web browsers, Graphic applications, etc. Thanks for the help

Ed Colman