Please Note: This article is written for users of the following Microsoft Word versions: 2007, 2010, 2013, and 2016. 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: Triple-Spacing Your Document.

Triple-Spacing Your Document

by Allen Wyatt
(last updated April 1, 2017)

If you ever have a need to triple-space your document before printing it, Word provides an easy way to do this. If possible, you should keep your document in the format in which you view it on the screen, and only format it for triple spacing before you actually print. To print a triple-spaced version of your document, do the following:

  1. Save your document.
  2. Press Ctrl+A to select the entire document.
  3. Display the Home tab of the ribbon.
  4. Click the small icon at the bottom-right of the Paragraph group. Word displays the Paragraph dialog box. It is possible that some of the fields in the dialog box are not filled in. This is because you have selected the entire document, and the "empty" setting is different for different paragraphs. (See Figure 1.)

    5. Figure 1. The Paragraph dialog box.

  5. In the Spacing area, choose Multiple in the Line Spacing drop-down list.
  6. Change the At setting (to the right of the Line Spacing drop-down list) to 3.
  7. Click on OK.
  8. Print your document.
  9. Close your document without saving.

This last step is important. If you save your document before exiting, then the triple spacing will be permanently saved with the document, as well.

You can also use the Line Spacing tool in the Paragraph group of the Home tab to apply triple spacing. Follow these steps:

  1. Save your document.
  2. Press Ctrl+A.
  3. Click the Line Spacing tool. A number of spacing options appear.
  4. Choose 3. Your entire document is triple spaced.
  5. Print your document.
  6. Close your document without saving.

WordTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Word training. (Microsoft Word is the most popular word processing software in the world.) This tip (6705) applies to Microsoft Word 2007, 2010, 2013, and 2016. You can find a version of this tip for the older menu interface of Word here: Triple-Spacing Your Document.

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. ...

MORE FROM ALLEN

Jumping to Tables

If your document contains quite a few tables, you may find it helpful to jump quickly from one table to another. There ...

Discover More

Quickly Displaying the Style Dialog Box

If you display the style area, you can quickly display the Style dialog box.

Discover More

Sorting by Columns

When you think of sorting Excel data, it is likely that you think of sorting rows. Excel also allows you to sort by ...

Discover More

The First and Last Word on Word! Bestselling For Dummies author Dan Gookin puts his usual fun and friendly candor back to work to show you how to navigate Word 2013. Spend more time working and less time trying to figure it all out! Check out Word 2013 For Dummies today!

More WordTips (ribbon)

Printing the Active Document from a Macro

When you process a document in a macro, you may also want to print that document from within the same macro. Here's how ...

Discover More

Using Only Odd Page Numbers

Do you need to number the pages of your document using only odd page numbers? Word doesn't provide a way to do this, but ...

Discover More

Printing the Navigation Pane

The Navigation pane can be a handy tool for seeing the overall organization of your document and easily moving to ...

Discover More
Subscribe

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

View most recent newsletter.

(Your e-mail address is not shared with anyone, ever.)

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}] 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.

What is 9 + 9?

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.

Newest Tips
Subscribe

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

(Your e-mail address is not shared with anyone, ever.)

View the most recent newsletter.

Links and Sharing
OUR COMPANY
OUR PRODUCTS
OUR AUTHORS
OUR SITES
 

Copyright © 2020 Sharon Parq Associates, Inc.