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: Repeating In a Macro.
Written by Allen Wyatt (last updated May 15, 2021)
This tip applies to Word 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, and 2021
One of the most common things you need to do when creating a macro is to repeat a block of actions for each occurrence of something within a file. This may sound strange, but those who program know the situation very well—you need to search through a file and then take some action, repeat the search and repeat the action, and so on until the end of the file is reached. The general approach is as follows:
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:
Selection.HomeKey Unit:=wdStory
[set up for your search]
Selection.Find.Execute
While Selection.Find.Found
[take some action]
Selection.Find.Execute
Wend
The first line in this example moves to the beginning of the document. You then use whatever commands necessary to set up for your search. When the Selection.Find.Execute line is encountered, Word performs the actual search. Then Selection.Find.Found is used to control the While ... Wend loop. This property (Selection.Find.Found) is set to True each time an executed search actually results in something being found. Thus, the whole While ... Wend loop is repeated over and over again, as long as whatever you are searching for continues to be found. As the last step in the loop, the Selection.Find.Execute statement is used to once again perform the search.
Note:
WordTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Word training. (Microsoft Word is the most popular word processing software in the world.) This tip (13072) 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: Repeating In a Macro.
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 2019. Spend more time working and less time trying to figure it all out! Check out Word 2019 For Dummies today!
Need to figure out the hour represented by a particular time value? It's easy to do in a macro; just use the Hour ...
Discover MoreMacros are very good at completing mundane, repetitive tasks. For instance, you could use the macro presented in this tip ...
Discover MoreYour macro code may need to determine the month of the year represented by a particular date. You can find the desired ...
Discover MoreFREE SERVICE: Get tips like this every week in WordTips, a free productivity newsletter. Enter your address and click "Subscribe."
There are currently no comments for this tip. (Be the first to leave your comment—just use the simple form above!)
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.
Visit the WordTips channel on YouTube
FREE SERVICE: Get tips like this every week in WordTips, a free productivity newsletter. Enter your address and click "Subscribe."
Copyright © 2025 Sharon Parq Associates, Inc.
Comments