Please Note: This article is written for users of the following Microsoft Word versions: 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, and 2021. 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 Character Formatting in a Macro.

Resetting Character Formatting in a Macro

Written by Allen Wyatt (last updated August 29, 2022)
This tip applies to Word 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, and 2021

One of the things that most people use macros for is to make short work of formatting. It takes a while to set up macros to handle formatting, but it saves time in the long run if you have a document of any length at all.

Word provides many different commands and functions that affect character formatting. One of those commands causes the character formatting of a text selection to be set to the default for your paragraph. This is the syntax for the Reset method, which is used if you are programming in VBA:

Selection.Font.Reset

As you can see, there is not much to this command. It simply and quickly resets character formatting. This macro code is equivalent to pressing Ctrl+Space Bar to reset character formatting manually.

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 (12326) applies to Microsoft Word 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, and 2021. You can find a version of this tip for the older menu interface of Word here: Resetting Character Formatting in a Macro.

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...

MORE FROM ALLEN

Searching for Character Formatting

Need to look for a piece of text possessing a particular formatting attribute? Here's the skinny on how this is accomplished.

Discover More

Pictures Move on their Own

Insert some pictures into a document, and you may be in for a surprise—they don't necessarily stay where you put ...

Discover More

Forcing a Macro to Run when a Worksheet is Recalculated

Normally a macro is only calculated when you specifically tell Excel to calculate it. Some macros need to be calculated ...

Discover More

The First and Last Word on Word! Bestselling For Dummies author Dan Gookin puts his usual fun and friendly candor back to work to show you how to navigate Word 2013. Spend more time working and less time trying to figure it all out! Check out Word 2013 For Dummies today!

More WordTips (ribbon)

Can't Edit Macros

Load up documents created on older versions of Word, and you may find that you can't edit the macros you are used to ...

Discover More

Changing Built-in Word Commands

Want to replace Word's internal commands with your own macros? It's easy to do if you know the key discussed in this tip.

Discover More

Temporarily Changing the Printer in a Macro

You can use a macro to print to any printer you have defined in Windows. It is good practice, if you are changing which ...

Discover More

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.

Notify me about new comments ONLY FOR THIS TIP

Notify me about new comments ANYWHERE ON THIS SITE

Hide my email address

What is nine minus 1?

There are currently no comments for this tip. (Be the first to leave your comment—just use the simple form above!)

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.