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: Dealing with Run-On Sentences.

Dealing with Run-On Sentences

by Allen Wyatt
(last updated February 23, 2019)

1

Mia often edits documents containing run-on sentences. Invariably these are two sentences that are currently joined by a comma. Mia wants to replace the comma with a period and then capitalize the first letter of the next word. Doing this manually gets repetitive and time-consuming, so she would like to create a macro and a keyboard shortcut to handle the process.

You could actually record a macro to handle this type of edit. Put your insertion point to the left of the comma and start the macro recorder. You can then perform these steps:

  1. Hold down the Shift key as you press the Right Arrow key to select the comma.
  2. Press a period. This replaces the comma with the requisite period.
  3. Press the Right Arrow once. This should move past the space and put the insertion point just to the left of the character you want to capitalize.
  4. Hold down the Shift key as you press the Right Arrow key to select the character.
  5. Display the Home tab of the ribbon.
  6. Click Change Case in the Font group.

You can now stop the macro recorder. The macro could be assigned to a shortcut key or added to the Quick Access Toolbar. If you examine the macro, you will find that it looks similar to the following:

Sub FixRunOn()
    Selection.MoveRight Unit:=wdCharacter, _
      Count:=1, Extend:=wdExtend
    Selection.TypeText Text:="."
    Selection.MoveRight Unit:=wdCharacter, _
      Count:=1
    Selection.MoveRight Unit:=wdCharacter, _
      Count:=1, Extend:=wdExtend
    Selection.Range.Case = wdUpperCase
End Sub

Note:

If you would like to know how to use the macros described on this page (or on any other page on the WordTips sites), I've prepared a special page that includes helpful information. Click here to open that special page in a new browser tab.

WordTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Word training. (Microsoft Word is the most popular word processing software in the world.) This tip (10558) 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: Dealing with Run-On Sentences.

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

Defining a Shortcut for a Macro

You can make running macros very easy if you assign a shortcut key to the macro. This tip demonstrates how easy it is to ...

Discover More

Locking a Field

When you use fields in your document, you may want them to not change from a particular displayed result. You can lock ...

Discover More

Counting the Instances of a Text String

Sometimes it is helpful to know how often a particular phrase appears within a document. If you need to know such a ...

Discover More

Comprehensive VBA Guide Visual Basic for Applications (VBA) is the language used for writing macros in all Office programs. This complete guide shows both professionals and novices how to master VBA in order to customize the entire Office suite for their needs. Check out Mastering VBA for Office 2010 today!

More WordTips (ribbon)

Controlling Overtype Mode

Some people like to have Word replace previous information as they type; this is called 'overtype mode.' You can control ...

Discover More

Capitalizing the Word "I"

The first-person, singular pronoun "I" should always be capitalized, unless you are exercising poetic license. Word may ...

Discover More

Smart Quotes with Dragon Naturally Speaking

Dragon Naturally Speaking is a very popular transcription tool that converts speech into text. When using the program ...

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.

(Your e-mail address is not shared with anyone, ever.)

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}] 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 five minus 2?

2019-02-25 14:19:41

Malcolm Patterson

Step 6 can also be performed by pressing SHIFT+F3, which toggles the case of selected text from lowercase to initial cap to all caps and back to lowercase. If text is not selected but the cursor is within a word, then that word's case changes. (I generally prefer a key combination to a mouse click.)

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.

Newest Tips
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.

Links and Sharing
OUR COMPANY
OUR PRODUCTS
OUR AUTHORS
OUR SITES
 

Copyright © 2019 Sharon Parq Associates, Inc.