Creating a Document Clone

There may be times when you want to make a copy of a Word document, without affecting the original document at all. Word provides an easy way to do this; simply follow these steps if you are using Word 2007 or Word 2010:

1. Press Ctrl+O. Word displays the standard Open dialog box.
2. Select the document file you want to make a copy of.
3. Click on the down-arrow at the right side of the Open button. Word displays a menu of choices.
4. Choose the Open As Copy option. Word opens a copy of the document.

If you are using Word 2013 or a later version, follow these steps instead:

1. Press Ctrl+O. Word displays Open options on the File tab of the ribbon.
2. Click the source of where you want to find the document. (For the purposes of this example, click Computer or This PC [depending on which version of Word you are using]).
3. Click Browse. Word displays the standard Open dialog box. (Depending on which version of Word you are using, you may have the option to click Browse in Step 2).
4. Select the document file you want to make a copy of.
5. Click on the down-arrow at the right side of the Open button. Word displays a menu of choices.
6. Choose the Open as Copy option. Word opens a copy of the document.

The document that is opened uses the same file name, but Word attaches some sort of prefix to the file name, such as "Copy of" or "Copy (1)". Thus, if the original document you selected in step 2 is named "My Document.docx," what Word creates is a document named "Copy of My Document.docx" or "Copy (1)My Document.docx." If you want to rename the file, you will need to either use the Save As command or rename the document after closing it.

WordTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Word training. (Microsoft Word is the most popular word processing software in the world.) This tip (7841) 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: Creating a Document Clone.