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At the Word Options window, select the entry for Advanced and moved to the Cut, Copy, and Paste section. You can also change the default options and other settings for formatted text. In this case, choosing either Merge Formatting or Keep Text Only should do the trick. Then hover your mouse over the different Paste Option choices to select the proper formatting ( Figure C). Instead of using the old Ctrl/V move, right-click the area where you want to paste the text. Copy a selection of text and then move your cursor to the middle of a paragraph with different formatting. You can use the same Paste Options to solve this problem. Sometimes the pasted text changes the formatting for all the surrounding text in the paragraph. Again, hover over each option for a preview and then select the one you want to use ( Figure B).
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Paste Options appears in the pop-up menu. This time, right-click in the area where you want to paste the selected text. You can also select the right option before you paste it. Each option provides a preview to help you pick the right one. Hover your mouse over the different options, and you can choose to keep the source formatting, merge the formatting, paste it as a picture, or paste it as plain text ( Figure A). Click the Paste Options button that appears right after you pasted the text. The pasted text either retains its original formatting or takes on the formatting of the surrounding text either way, let’s say the formatting is not what you want. Position your cursor in the right spot and press the usual Ctrl/V to paste the text. Select a word or line of text with one type of font or attribute and move it to an area of text with different formatting. Launch Microsoft Word on your PC and open a document with text–use a document that contains different text formatted with more than one font or attribute. SEE: 50 time-saving tips to speed your work in Microsoft Office (free PDF) (TechRepublic) (I’m using the latest version of Microsoft Word from an Office 365 subscription, but the steps apply to the past few flavors of Word as well.)
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Let’s look at how to control Word’s copying and pasting. The secret to using copy and paste in Word is to set it up properly ahead of time, but you can also control the content just before and just after you paste it. Other times, the pasted content affects the surrounding text. Sometimes the content you paste doesn’t retain or use the formatting you want. Here's how.Ĭopying and pasting content in Microsoft Word can be a time-saver, but it can also be frustrating. You can customize the formatting of pasted content before and after it's pasted in Microsoft Word. How to control copying and pasting in Microsoft Word
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