Please Note: This article is written for users of the following Microsoft Word versions: 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, and Word in Office 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: Changing the Height of a Font.
Word makes it easy to change the horizontal scale of a font, by using the Scale control on the Advanced tab of the Font dialog box. Using the control changes only the horizontal scale; the vertical height of the font remains exactly the same.
It is interesting to note that Word does not provide any corresponding method to change the vertical scale of a font without affecting the width. There is a way around this disparity, however: You can play with the font size and adjust the horizontal scale negatively.
For instance, let's say that you have a text selection that is formatted using 12-point type. Now suppose that you want your font to be 25 percent taller, but not to have the width changed. You could follow these general steps:
Figure 1. The Character Spacing tab of the Font dialog box.
That's it. You now have a font that is the same width as its base font but is the desired height. Depending on the font, you may need to play with the sizing just a bit to get the desired effect, but this approach should work in all instances. Just remember that whatever you multiply the height by, you need to divide the width by (always starting at 100%).
WordTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Word training. (Microsoft Word is the most popular word processing software in the world.) This tip (9079) applies to Microsoft Word 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, and Word in Office 365. You can find a version of this tip for the older menu interface of Word here: Changing the Height of a Font.
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!
The strikethrough text feature in Word can be used as part of your document or to indicate that changes have been made to ...
Discover MoreWant to quickly format some text in your document? Select, right-click, and make a selection, and you can get to the ...
Discover MoreWhen you need to adjust the space Word uses between characters, you need to adjust what is called “kerning.” This tip ...
Discover MoreFREE SERVICE: Get tips like this every week in WordTips, a free productivity newsletter. Enter your address and click "Subscribe."
There are currently no comments for this tip. (Be the first to leave your comment—just use the simple form above!)
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.
FREE SERVICE: Get tips like this every week in WordTips, a free productivity newsletter. Enter your address and click "Subscribe."
Copyright © 2020 Sharon Parq Associates, Inc.
Please Note:
This article is written for users of the following Microsoft Word versions: 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, and Word in Office 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: 
Comments