How to create a custom exception type in Java?

You should be able to create a custom exception class that extends the Exception class, for example:

class WordContainsException extends Exception
{
      // Parameterless Constructor
      public WordContainsException() {}

      // Constructor that accepts a message
      public WordContainsException(String message)
      {
         super(message);
      }
 }

Usage:

try
{
     if(word.contains(" "))
     {
          throw new WordContainsException();
     }
}
catch(WordContainsException ex)
{
      // Process message however you would like
}