Please Note: This article is written for users of the following Microsoft Word versions: 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, 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: Resetting Default Character Formatting.

Resetting Default Character Formatting

Written by Allen Wyatt (last updated July 23, 2024)
This tip applies to Word 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, and Word in Microsoft 365


1

Word provides an easy way to remove any explicit character formatting that was done to a group of characters. This is all you have to do:

  1. Select the text from which you want the formatting removed.
  2. Press Ctrl+Space Bar.

The character formatting for the selected characters will be set back to its default condition. This means the characters will take on the default attributes associated with the paragraph's style.

WordTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Word training. (Microsoft Word is the most popular word processing software in the world.) This tip (11055) applies to Microsoft Word 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, and Word in Microsoft 365. You can find a version of this tip for the older menu interface of Word here: Resetting Default Character Formatting.

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

Using the GotoButton Field

Need to jump from one place in your document to another? One way to do this is through the user of the GotoButton field, ...

Discover More

How Many Times Does Each Name Appear in a List?

If you have a list of names in a column, and you want to know how many times those names appear in a larger list of data, ...

Discover More

Reading View in Office 365

Word provides a plethora of ways you can view your document. This tip looks at one of those views (Reading view) and ...

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)

Underlining Section References Automatically

If you have a document that has some sort of keyword within it (such as "Section") you may want to automatically format ...

Discover More

Quickly Changing Font Sizes

A quick little shortcut can help you easily step through different font sizes for whatever text you've selected. Word ...

Discover More

Using a Macro to Change the Formatting of All Instances of a Word

If you have a word that you need to make sure is formatted the same way throughout your document, there are several ways ...

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.

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.

What is 8 + 7?

2020-03-21 15:34:41

David Gray

This is a GREAT tip!


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.

Videos
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.