Linking Text Boxes

Written by Allen Wyatt (last updated May 10, 2023)
This tip applies to Word 2007 and 2010

Kylie wonders how, in Word 2010, she can link text boxes so that text flows from one text box to another. She knows how to do it in Word 2007 (right-click on the text box and choose "create text box link"), but it appears that option is not available in Word 2010.

Kylie is correct; it appears that the Context menu option she references is available in Word 2007 but missing in Word 2010. You can still create a link between text boxes, however, by following these steps:

Create both of your text boxes.
Place your text (even if it is very long) in the first text box.
Make sure the second text box is empty—it should not contain any text.
Place the insertion point within the first text box.
Make sure the Format tab of the ribbon is visible. (This tab is only available if a text box is selected or if the insertion point is within a text box.)
Click the Create Link tool, within the Text group. The mouse pointer changes to a cup containing a downward-pointing arrow.
Click the mouse pointer within the second text box.

These steps will also work in Word 2007 as well as in Word 2010.

WordTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Word training. (Microsoft Word is the most popular word processing software in the world.) This tip (11668) applies to Microsoft Word 2007 and 2010.

Author Bio

Allen Wyatt

With more than 50 non-fiction books and numerous magazine articles to his credit, Allen Wyatt is an internationally recognized author. He is president of Sharon Parq Associates, a computer and publishing services company. Learn more about Allen...

MORE FROM ALLEN

Modifying Error Alerts Received

Excel helpfully lets you know when the data or formulas you've entered in a cell don't make sense. It does this by ...

Discover More

Noting Inactivity within a Timeframe

There are many times when you are creating a worksheet that you need to analyze dates within that worksheet. Once such ...

Discover More

Switching between a Dialog Box and the Document

Word uses lots of dialog boxes as a way of setting configuration options and gathering information from users. When ...

Discover More

Do More in Less Time! Are you ready to harness the full power of Word 2013 to create professional documents? In this comprehensive guide you'll learn the skills and techniques for efficiently building the documents you need for your professional and your personal life. Check out Word 2013 In Depth today!

More WordTips (ribbon)

Removing Text Boxes but Saving the Text

Text boxes can be handy when it comes to noting information in a document or dealing with some tricky layout issues. If ...

Discover More

Columns in a Text Box

Want to divide a text box into columns? Word doesn't allow you to do this, but there are ways to work around the limitation.

Discover More

Extracting Text Box Contents

If your document has quite a few text boxes within it, you may want to extract the contents of those text boxes to a new ...

Discover More

FREE SERVICE: Get tips like this every week in WordTips, a free productivity newsletter. Enter your address and click "Subscribe."

View most recent newsletter.

Comments

If you would like to add an image to your comment (not an avatar, but an image to help in making the point of your comment), include the characters [{fig}] (all 7 characters, in the sequence shown) in your comment text. You’ll be prompted to upload your image when you submit the comment. Maximum image size is 6Mpixels. Images larger than 600px wide or 1000px tall will be reduced. Up to three images may be included in a comment. All images are subject to review. Commenting privileges may be curtailed if inappropriate images are posted.

Notify me about new comments ONLY FOR THIS TIP

Notify me about new comments ANYWHERE ON THIS SITE

Hide my email address

What is 8 + 7?

There are currently no comments for this tip. (Be the first to leave your comment—just use the simple form above!)

This Site

Got a version of Word that uses the ribbon interface (Word 2007 or later)? This site is for you! If you use an earlier version of Word, visit our WordTips site focusing on the menu interface.