Please Note: This article is written for users of the following Microsoft Word versions: 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, Word in Microsoft 365, and 2021. If you are using an earlier version (Word 2003 or earlier), this tip may not work for you. For a version of this tip written specifically for earlier versions of Word, click here: Automatically Selecting Words.
When you are editing your document, there are many times that Word tries to guess what you are doing and then complete your task for you. This helpfulness can be aggravating at times. One such instance is when you are trying to use the mouse to select text from the middle of one word to the middle of another. Whenever you click inside a word and then start dragging the mouse, Word assumes you want to make a selection. As soon as you move the mouse pointer outside the word, the program assumes you wanted to select the entire first word in which you originally clicked.
If you want to ensure that Word doesn't make that assumption, you need to follow these steps to turn off the offending feature:
Figure 1. The Advanced area of the Word Options dialog box.
WordTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Word training. (Microsoft Word is the most popular word processing software in the world.) This tip (745) applies to Microsoft Word 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, Word in Microsoft 365, and 2021. You can find a version of this tip for the older menu interface of Word here: Automatically Selecting Words.
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Please Note:
This article is written for users of the following Microsoft Word versions: 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, Word in Microsoft 365, and 2021. If you are using an earlier version (Word 2003 or earlier), this tip may not work for you. For a version of this tip written specifically for earlier versions of Word, click here: 
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