Please Note: This article is written for users of the following Microsoft Word versions: 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, 2021, and Word in Microsoft 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: Quickly Moving Text with the Mouse.

Quickly Moving Text with the Mouse

Written by Allen Wyatt (last updated October 1, 2022)
This tip applies to Word 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, 2021, and Word in Microsoft 365

There are two ways you can use the mouse to quickly move text as you are editing. They both result in the same effect, but the method you choose is entirely up to you. To utilize the first method, do the following:

Select the text you want to move.
Position the mouse cursor over the selected text and click the mouse button. Make sure you hold it down. Soon you will notice some dotted lines appear near the mouse pointer.
Drag the highlighted selection to where you want it moved.
Release the mouse button. The highlighted text is moved to the location you specified.

The other method is actually a bit easier for some people:

Select the text you want to move.
Hold down the Ctrl key and right-click where you want the selected text moved.

WordTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Word training. (Microsoft Word is the most popular word processing software in the world.) This tip (10648) applies to Microsoft Word 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, 2021, and Word in Microsoft 365. You can find a version of this tip for the older menu interface of Word here: Quickly Moving Text with the Mouse.

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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