Please Note: This article is written for users of the following Microsoft Word versions: 2007 and 2010. 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: Saving Portions of Files.

Saving Portions of Files

Written by Allen Wyatt (last updated February 1, 2018)
This tip applies to Word 2007 and 2010

Some word processing programs contain an option that allows you to save a selected portion of a document to a new document automatically. Word does not, unfortunately, allow you to do this. You can, however, use a couple of workarounds. The first quick workaround is as follows:

Highlight the text you want to save to a new file.
Copy it to the Clipboard by pressing Ctrl+C.
Create a new, blank document.
Press Ctrl+V. This pastes the text into the new document

At this point you can do anything with the new document you desire. The following method of dealing with this problem is also a unique way to approach the situation:

Highlight the text you want to save to a new file.
Copy it to the Clipboard by pressing Ctrl+C.
Minimize Word.
Right-click on the desktop. This displays a Context menu.
Choose Paste from the Context menu. This causes a scrap to appear on the desktop.
Double-click on the desktop scrap. Word opens a new document containing the scrap.

At this point you can save the new document under any name you want. You should note that this technique of pasting scraps to the desktop won't work in all versions of Windows. It will work in Windows XP, but not in Vista or Windows 7.

WordTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Word training. (Microsoft Word is the most popular word processing software in the world.) This tip (10177) applies to Microsoft Word 2007 and 2010. You can find a version of this tip for the older menu interface of Word here: Saving Portions of Files.

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...

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What is five less than 5?

2022-11-26 12:26:47

Larry Schwartz

Trying the procedure in Saving Portions of Files, under Win 11 and Office 2021, PASTE is grayed out.

2018-02-01 19:55:28

Tom Bielski

Dave

Paste to scrap does not work on Windows 7, 8 or 10

Tom

2018-02-01 09:33:23

Dave

When I right-click the desktop, the Paste option is not active.

2014-05-31 00:09:16

Tony

When i right-click on the desktop, Paste is greyed out in the context menu.

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