Please Note: This article is written for users of the following Microsoft Word versions: 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, 2021, and Word in Microsoft 365. 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: Displaying ScreenTips.

Displaying ScreenTips

Written by Allen Wyatt (last updated July 30, 2022)
This tip applies to Word 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, 2021, and Word in Microsoft 365

As you work with the mouse in Word, you have no doubt noticed small yellow boxes that pop up near the mouse pointer and indicate information about whatever you are pointing at. In Word, these are called ScreenTips. By default, they are turned on, meaning they are displayed. If you find them distracting, you can turn them off by following these steps:

Display the Word Options dialog box. (In Word 2007 click the Office button and then click Word Options. In Word 2010 and Word 2013 display the File tab of the ribbon and then click Options.)
Click the Advanced option at the left of the screen.
Scroll through the list of options until you find the Display section. (See Figure 1.)

Figure 1. The Advanced options of the Word Options dialog box.

Make sure the Show Shortcut Keys in ScreenTips check box is cleared.
Click on OK.

WordTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Word training. (Microsoft Word is the most popular word processing software in the world.) This tip (5923) applies to Microsoft Word 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, 2021, and Word in Microsoft 365. You can find a version of this tip for the older menu interface of Word here: Displaying ScreenTips.

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

Character Frequency Count

Word collects a wide range of statistics about your documents, but one of the things it doesn't collect is how many times ...

Discover More

Looking Up Names when Key Values are Identical

Need to look up some values based upon some key items that may be identical to each other? Depending on the ...

Discover More

Should I Leave My Computer On All the Time?

Do you turn your computer on and off all the time? Do you really know if this is good for your computer or not?

Discover More

Do More in Less Time! An easy-to-understand guide to the more advanced features available in the Microsoft 365 version of Word. Enhance the quality of your documents and boost productivity in any field with this in-depth resource. Complete your Word-related tasks more efficiently as you unlock lesser-known tools and learn to quickly access the features you need. Check out Microsoft 365 Word For Professionals For Dummies today!

More WordTips (ribbon)

Using the Insert Key to Insert Text

The Insert key can be used for different purposes, depending on how you configure the program. This tip explains those ...

Discover More

Displaying the Ruler

The ubiquitous ruler appears at the top of every Word document. It is so commonplace, that you may forget that it is easy ...

Discover More

Controlling Scroll Bars

Scroll bars are helpful if you have a document that won't fit entirely within the program window. Here's how to turn off ...

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 5 - 0?

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.