Please Note: This article is written for users of the following Microsoft Word versions: 2007, 2010, 2013, and 2016. 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: Deleting Index Entries.

Deleting Index Entries

by Allen Wyatt
(last updated July 28, 2022)

Word provides the tools for you to create complete indexes for your documents. After creating all the index entries, as described in other WordTips, you might decide later to remove an index entry. To do this, follow these general steps:

Make sure you have Word set to display text that is formatted as hidden.
Use Find and Replace (Ctrl+F) to locate the index entry you want to delete.
Select the entire field, including the field braces, and press Del. The index entry is deleted.
Repeat steps 2 and 3 for each entry you want to delete.

WordTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Word training. (Microsoft Word is the most popular word processing software in the world.) This tip (11996) applies to Microsoft Word 2007, 2010, 2013, and 2016. You can find a version of this tip for the older menu interface of Word here: Deleting Index Entries.

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 1 + 3?

2020-11-13 14:06:06

Larry Schwartz

Referring to https://wordribbon.tips.net/T011996_Deleting_Index_Entries.html, why not just use Find & Replace, set the replacement value to null and then do a replace or replace all?

2017-03-29 07:11:29

David Godson

Does not work when index updated. reinserts 'deleted' entries.

2016-07-18 08:41:42

allen@sharonparq.com

Two ways, Sten. First, you could use the search box at the upper-right of any page. Second, you could use the "breadcrumbs" that appear near the top-left of this page. There you'll see the "Indexes" category. Click it, and you'll see other tips having to do with indexing.

2016-07-17 17:16:11

Sten-S

I was already familiar with you tips.
How do I scan your site for other tips on indexing!

Thanks for all tips you produce.

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