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: Inserting a Break with a Macro.

Inserting a Break with a Macro

Written by Allen Wyatt (last updated July 12, 2024)
This tip applies to Word 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, and 2021

You know how to insert breaks in your text manually, but you can also do the same thing under control of your macro. The InsertBreak method inserts any type of break in your document. The syntax is:

Selection.InsertBreak Type:=BreakValue

where BreakValue is one of the following values:

BreakValue		Result
wdPageBreak		Page break
wdColumnBreak		Column break
wdSectionBreakNextPage		Next-page section break
wdSectionBreakContinuous		Continuous section break
wdSectionBreakEvenPage		Even-page section break
wdSectionBreakOddPage		Odd-page section break
wdLineBreak		Line break

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 (12689) 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: Inserting a Break with 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

Creating Page Footers and Headers

Headers and footers can add a final, professional touch to your printed document. Here's the quick way to add the headers ...

Discover More

Space after a Table

Those familiar with styles are used to setting vertical spacing before or after paragraphs. You can get just the look you ...

Discover More

Specifying the Y Value in X of Y Page Numbering

Page numbers in Excel headers and footers have always been a source of frustration for users. This tip recounts one ...

Discover More

Learning Made Easy! Quickly teach yourself how to format, publish, and share your content using Word 2021 or Microsoft 365. With Step by Step, you set the pace, building and practicing the skills you need, just when you need them! Check out Microsoft Word Step by Step today!

More WordTips (ribbon)

Finding a Change in Typeface

When you format a document, you can go so far as to change the font of each character in the document. This may be ...

Discover More

Moving to the Start or End of the Real Document

The main body of your text is only one part of what makes up the entire document. Documents can consist of other ...

Discover More

Trimming Spaces from Strings

When processing text with a macro, you often need to remove extraneous spaces from the text. VBA provides three handy ...

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 eight more than 9?

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.