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: Copying Character Formatting.

Copying Character Formatting

Written by Allen Wyatt (last updated August 17, 2024)
This tip applies to Word 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, 2021, and Word in Microsoft 365


1

Often it is beneficial to copy character formatting from one place in your document to another. The easiest way to do this is to define character styles, as discussed in other WordTips. If, however, you want to quickly copy character formatting without using styles, Word also provides a fast way for doing this using the Format Painter:

  1. Select the characters whose formatting you want to copy.
  2. In the Home tab of the ribbon look in the Clipboard group. Click on the Format Painter control to copy the format.
  3. Click and drag the mouse pointer over the text to which you want the formatting applied.

There is one thing to understand about using the Format Painter. If, in step 1, you select multiple characters, then if you just click in a word in step 3, the formatting will be applied to the entire word in which you clicked. If you want to apply it just to a few characters, then you'll need to use the mouse to select those characters in step 3.

You can also copy the same format repeatedly by double clicking the Format Painter tool in step 2. You will then be able to apply the same formatting until you turn off format painting by clicking on the tool one more time or by hitting the Esc key.

Word also provides shortcut keys to quickly paste character formatting. Simply select the text whose formatting you want to copy, then press Shift+Ctrl+C. This copies the formatting to the Clipboard. Then, select the characters you want to format, and press Shift+Ctrl+V.

These shortcuts work in most versions of Word. However, if you are using Word in Microsoft 365, these shortcuts will not work. Instead, you'll need to use Alt+Ctrl+C to copy formatting and Alt+Ctrl+V to paste formatting. Microsoft made this change in the first half of 2023 because they wanted to use Shift+Ctrl+V to paste text only, without any formatting on the text being pasted. You can find information about this switch in shortcut keys here:

https://insider.microsoft365.com/he-il/blog/paste-text-only-shortcut-in-word

WordTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Word training. (Microsoft Word is the most popular word processing software in the world.) This tip (8617) 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: Copying Character Formatting.

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

Table Numbers are Skipped

What do you do if you add numbered captions to an element of your document (such as tables) and Word skips a number? ...

Discover More

Creating Tables with Specific Column Widths

Create a table and Word figures out column widths by dividing the horizontal space by the number of columns you want in ...

Discover More

Increasing the AutoFilter Drop-Down Limit

When you turn on AutoFiltering, Excel displays a drop-down list at the top of each column in your data table. This list ...

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 2019. Spend more time working and less time trying to figure it all out! Check out Word 2019 For Dummies today!

More WordTips (ribbon)

Changing Existing Highlighting

Need to change the color you previously used to highlight text in your document? You can use Word's Find and Replace tool ...

Discover More

Creating a Drop Cap

Drop caps can be a nice finishing touch for some types of documents. Word allows you to create three types of drop caps, ...

Discover More

Making Text Bold

Want a cool shortcut to make your text bold? Here's a method that fits in wonderfully with how things are done in the ...

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.

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.

What is one more than 8?

2025-08-16 12:33:12

Barbie

So instead of changing the shortcuts people now use automatically...why couldn't they just use Alt-Ctl-V for paste special?!! I installed the latest version of Word as a one-time purchase, and when copy\paste format didn't work as expected, i went in and changed it back to the old shortcut (which I find easier to press than the new one, as I can use one finger for the Ctrl and shift keys)


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.

Videos
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.