Written by Allen Wyatt (last updated June 8, 2024)
This tip applies to Word 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, 2021, and Word in Microsoft 365
Mike has a document that has a large table in it. The table is only two columns wide, but it has many rows. The rows are formatted so that they won't break across pages. Mike is concerned, though, that with this setting made, if he later reformats the document layout (like switching from portrait to landscape), that some large rows won't fit completely on a page. He wonders if this setting will then cause the table to not display properly or the document to be unstable.
The easiest way to figure out is some setting or another will cause a problem in a particular scenario is to test it out. In this case, Mike could make a copy of his document and simply change from portrait to landscape orientation. If he did so, he would quickly find that it doesn't present a problem and the document content displays just fine. What does occur, though, is that Word effectively ignores the setting to not break rows across a page. This is necessary because it is impossible to display the row on a single page.
That being said, if you change the orientation of the pages in the document, it is likely that you will also adjust the width of the columns in the table. When you do so, you may find that your rows are able to fit on a single page. In that case, you could end up with a "funky" layout that has one thin row on one page, one full-page row on the next page, and then a thin row or two on the following page. The only way to avoid that situation is to either turn off the restriction against row splitting or make sure none of your rows are very thick.
WordTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Word training. (Microsoft Word is the most popular word processing software in the world.) This tip (10152) applies to Microsoft Word 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, 2021, and Word in Microsoft 365.
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!
When you print, do you get an extra blank page printed at the end of the document? It could be because of the final ...
Discover MoreTired of that old table taking up space in your document? You can get rid of it using a variety of techniques, some of ...
Discover MoreYou can use fields to calculate a sum of values in a table column. Here are two ways you can modify what the fields ...
Discover MoreFREE SERVICE: Get tips like this every week in WordTips, a free productivity newsletter. Enter your address and click "Subscribe."
2024-06-08 05:43:37
Ron S
The document will not be "corrupted", if that is what you are asking.
What do you mean "display properly"?
The text will all be there. Word will "decide" where and how it wraps lines and splits pages. Whether you agree with Word on what is "correct", that may be debatable.
You may have to "trick" it into splitting pages in a way that you think is "proper". Mostly you do that using extra blank spaces and/or "soft return", <SHF><Enter>, or "hard return", <Enter>, or by using "hard spaces", <CTL><Shf><Enter>, to force word to keep words on same line. Or by manually splitting the cell and moving the desired text to the next line.
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.
Visit the WordTips channel on YouTube
FREE SERVICE: Get tips like this every week in WordTips, a free productivity newsletter. Enter your address and click "Subscribe."
Copyright © 2025 Sharon Parq Associates, Inc.
Comments