Written by Allen Wyatt (last updated June 16, 2023)
This tip applies to Word 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, and 2021
Styles are key to the underlying power of Word. They allow you to consistently define how your text should look throughout a document or a series of documents. There are a number of ways in which you can define styles, but the way you use them will depend most heavily on the version of Word you are using. To define a style in Word, simply follow these steps:
Figure 1. The Create New Style from Formatting dialog box.
Once the style is defined (or an existing style modified), you can use your style anywhere you like within your document.
WordTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Word training. (Microsoft Word is the most popular word processing software in the world.) This tip (5946) applies to Microsoft Word 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, and 2021. You can find a version of this tip for the older menu interface of Word here: Defining Styles.
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2018-12-26 15:19:14
Christopher Ohland
I'd like to hear your feedback re my comment. When I create a style the name assigned to the style follows the nomenclature of the stock styles but describes the changes. For example: Body Text 06/06LNS used the Body Text paragraph style with 6 pt spacing before and after, left justified, and no space between the lines.
I like to stick with the stock style names but sometimes I need a name specific to its use. For example: Flysheet, Flysheet 2, Flysheet 3. Note how I use the default system of numbering with number " 2" and " 3" as secondary and tertiary levels to "Flysheet."
I also like to create Character styles for font features. Primarily, so that font features are maintain when styles are re-applied without the intention to lost the character fonts. For example Font Superscript is use for superscripting and would be lost if someone re-applied the Body Text style. Others are Font Scale 33% used to create small spaces between numbers and scientific values, Font Condensed 0.3pt so that I can squeeze a paragraph to fit at the bottom of a page.
Lastly, I use the Manage Styles, Recommend feature to list and order (order the style I use with low assigned value and move the most used into the Style Menu shown in the Home tab.
2018-12-24 11:12:41
Marlene Smith-Baranzini
Hello Allen,
Thank you for all the word tips, and Merry Christmas!
Regarding Styles, when you save a new style or one you’ve modified, one choice is whether to update existing documents based on that style (as I recall). I never know what to check — afraid that then older docs I’ve saved using that style will be automatically updated. I fear messing things up if I check yes.
Marlene Smith-Baranzini
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