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16 Microsoft Word Tips You Need

to Learn Now
Think you know everything about Microsoft Word? Here are some
hidden tricks and time-saving hacks you need to know about
Redmond's word-processing app.

 ByEvan Dashevsky andJason Cohen

 July 10, 2019 1:40PM EST
 Fac ebook

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Microsoft Word is the most ubiquitous word -processing program on the

market; it's intuitive even for the most technologically illiterate
computer users and is backed by the powerfu l Microsoft Office suite.

Nudged by cloud-based programs like Google Docs, Word has evolved

over the years with online subscriptions that offer access on multiple
devices, as well as a free, cloud-based version of Word. But despite
the competition, Microsoft's software remains the go -to tool for
producing important docs. And why not? It's dependab le,
 customizable, and has lots of baked -in functionality you may not have
tried yet. Read on for some semi-hidden treats only power users know.

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Determine Your Readability Statistics

Word has the power to not only judge your grammar and
spelling, but also your writing's complexity. For example, does
your writing meet the comprehension level of someone
pursuing a post-grad degree, or someone still learning their
shapes and colors?

Word uses lingual tests such as the Flesch Reading Ease test,
which calculates a score on a 100-point scale. The higher a
number, the easier it is to understand. Office's own
documentation suggests you want a score between 60 and 70.

Additionally, Word will run a similar lingual test, the Flesch -

Kincaid Grade Level test, which will tell you what US grade
level a text is written for; most docs should aim for between 7.0
and 8.0, Microsoft says.

In order to use this feature, you will first have to turn it on by

navigating to File > Options > Proofing. Then select Show
readability statistics under spelling and grammar. Now when
you ask Word to run a spellcheck, it will also generate your
document's readability statistics.

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Highlight a Square Field of Text

Here's a feature that will only be usable in very specific cases.

If you hold down the Alt key in Windows, or the Option key on a
Mac, while you click and drag your mouse, you will be able to
draw a box within the document that will highlight all the
characters in that box. If you ever wanted to c reate a perfect
square of purple text in the middle of a chunk of text, that's how
you'd go about it.

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Generate Random Text

If you need to add Lorem Ipsum into your document as a

placeholder, Word has you covered. Just type: =lorem(p,l) and
replace the "p" with the number of paragraphs you want, and
replace the "l" with the number of sentences you need. You can
also just include one number in the parentheses and it wi ll
create that many paragraphs. When ready, place the cursor at
the end of the equation and hit Enter to generate your text.

You can also use random Office documentation gobbledygook

as the source material for your place filler. Use the equation
=rand(p,l) instead.

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Add a Calculator to Word

Word has a built-in calculator that can help you solve equations
right in your document. First, add it to the Word menu by
navigating to File > Options > Quick Access Toolbar and
selecting All Commands from the drop-down menu. Locate
Calculate, and click Add to move it to the Quick Access Toolbar
column. Click OK to return to your document.

You will notice that a small gray circle has been added to the
top of your Word document. Now you can type math equations,
and if you highlight them, that icon will change color. Press the
icon and Word will calculate the answer.

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Highlight a Sentence With a Click

To quickly highlight an entire sentence, hold down the Ctrl key

in Windows, or Command key on a Mac, and click the
beginning of the sentence. Word will take care of the rest.

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Hop Around to Editing Hotspots

 Hitting Shift-F5 will allow you to cycle through the parts of your
document you've recently edited. This trick will even remember
where you were editing last after you re-open a document.

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Write Text Anywhere

You can use Word as a whiteboard of sorts and easily place

text anywhere on the page. Just click twice on any place on the
page and Word will allow you to start typing there. Word
automatically inserts hard returns and tabs to allow you to enter
text. Avant garde poets, this function is for you.

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Auto-Update Date & Time

Sometimes you have a document you use again and again,

updating only a few key details. If this happens to be a
document like a letter that includes the date and/or time, one
nifty little trick is to allow Word to update the date
automatically.

Under the Insert tab, click the Date & Time button and a pop -up
window will appear. Click the date format you want and then be
sure to click the "update automatically" box in the bottom -right
corner. Now the date will automatically be updated every time
you open (or print) the document.
 

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Convert to a PDF and HTML Doc

Word makes it easy to convert your doc to a PDF or HTML file.

When you "save as" a file, you'll see a "Save as type" pull -
down menu, which will provide a bevy of options including PDF
and Web Page.

Note that the Web Page function can include a lot of extra
code. This won't necessarily affect the page, but can make
things a little messy if you need to change anything. Another
option is to use a free conversion site like Word to Clean HTML ,
which—as the name implies—will create HTML code from text
that is directly copied and pasted from a Word doc.

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Change Capitalizations the Easy Way

You can easily change the capitalization of any text with a click
of a button. Highlight a selection and click on the "Aa" pull -
down menu to alter your text between sentence case, all
uppercase, or all lowercase. You can also make every word
start with a capital letter and toggle between cases.


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Show Hidden Characters

If you are working on a complex document with different styles,

columns, and formats, editing can quickly become a tedious
exercise. The best way to see what's going on with your
document's formatting is to make all the invisible marks (hard
returns, soft returns, tabs, spaces) visible. Press Ctrl-Shift-8 in
Windows or Command-8 on a Mac.

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Replace Invisible Characters and Formatting

The Find and Replace tool in Microsoft Word is a lifesaver. You

can quickly and easily make mass changes without having to
hunt and peck for every instance of something you need
changed. But you can also do a Find and Replace for the
hidden characters in your document.

Click on the Find and Replace button in Word, then click More
in the dialogue box. Click on Format to search for formatting in
your document—the pull-down menu includes margins, font,
styles, and line spacing. So you could, for example, search and
replace a green font with purple font. Click Special to search for
special characters (em dash, white space, etc.).

You can also insert commands into the text field to search
formatting and characters directly. Use ^p^p to search/replace
double spaces, and replace them with ^p for single space. You
 can also use ^t to search for tabs, ^# to search digits, ^$ for
letters, and ^w for any white spaces.

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Insert Objects into Word

If you ever feel like your document could use a little something
added to the body copy, Word allows you to insert objects
directly onto the page. Click Insert > Object to open a dialogue
box that shows you what you can add. This is how you would
add a chart to your doc, but you can also embed a PDF or an
Excel spreadsheet as well.

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Insert Equations

You can add complex math equations into Word by click Insert
> Equation, and then selecting the equation you wish to add.
Once it has been inserted into your doc, you are free to change
formatting or replace letters with numbers.

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Protect Your Document

Word has a fair amount of built-in protection that will encrypt your
writing. Click File > Info to manage viewing and editing
permissions, enable password encryption, and create a
password for the doc.

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The Search Box Is Your Friend

Not sure where something is? In more recent versions of

Microsoft Word, you can type what you're looking for into the
search box for quick access.


TOP

About the Author

Evan Dashevsky Features Editor

Evan Dashevsky served as a features editor with PCMag and host of
live interview series The Convo. He could usually be found listening to
blisteringly loud noises on his headphones while exploring the nexus
between tech, culture, and politics. Follow his thought sneezes over on
the Twitter (@haldash) and slightly more in-depth diatribin' over on
th... See Full Bio

More From Evan

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Jason Cohen
Jason has been writing and editing professionally since graduating from
University of Maryland, College Park in 2010. He has previously served
as a technical writer for a government contractor and a copywriter with
a digital advertising agency, where he wrote about marketing and tech.
Most recently, he was writing about the New York Yankees for SB
... See Full Bio

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COMMENTS
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