Please Note: This article is written for users of the following Microsoft Word versions: 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, and 2021. 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: Controlling the Printing of Highlighting.

Controlling the Printing of Highlighting

Written by Allen Wyatt (last updated July 24, 2021)
This tip applies to Word 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, and 2021

It is not unusual to use the highlighting tool to mark up a document for your own use. You may not, however, want the highlighting to print on your output. You can turn off the printing of highlighting by following these steps:

Display the Word Options dialog box. (In Word 2007 click the Office button and then click Word Options. In Word 2010 or later versions, display the File tab of the ribbon and then click Options.)
Click Display at the left side of the dialog box. (See Figure 1.)

Figure 1. The Display options of the Word Options dialog box.

Clear the Show Highlighter Marks check box.
Click on OK to close the dialog box.

The highlighting in your document should disappear. It is still there, but you have simply hidden it, so it is not visible. You can now print your document, and the highlighting won't show. To again display the highlighting, follow the same steps but make sure the Show Highlighter Marks check box is selected.

WordTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Word training. (Microsoft Word is the most popular word processing software in the world.) This tip (9477) 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: Controlling the Printing of Highlighting.

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. Learn more about Allen...

MORE FROM ALLEN

Locking Graphic Annotations to Chart Data Points

Sometimes it is helpful to add annotations to your charts in order to explain the data displayed. This tip provides ...

Discover More

Dealing with Large Numbers of Seconds

When adding values to a time to calculate a new time, you may naturally choose to use the TIME function. This can cause ...

Discover More

Creating a Hierarchy Map of Your Hard Drive

Want to see how the directories and subdirectories in your hard drive are organized? It's easy to do using the directions ...

Discover More

Learning Made Easy! Quickly teach yourself how to format, publish, and share your content using Word 2021 or Microsoft 365. With Step by Step, you set the pace, building and practicing the skills you need, just when you need them! Check out Microsoft Word Step by Step today!

More WordTips (ribbon)

Preventing Printing

When dealing with determined users, it is virtually impossible to prevent information in your document from being ...

Discover More

Printing Outside the Boundaries All the Time

If Word thinks you are going to print in an area of the page that isn't printable, it will let you know. If you don't ...

Discover More

Printing without Headings

One way to use heading styles is to create a story outline. When it comes time to print the story, though, you may not ...

Discover More

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.

Notify me about new comments ONLY FOR THIS TIP

Notify me about new comments ANYWHERE ON THIS SITE

Hide my email address

What is eight more than 6?

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.