Please Note: This article is written for users of the following Microsoft Word versions: 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, and Word in Office 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: Quickly Accessing the Column Tab.

Quickly Accessing the Column Tab

by Allen Wyatt
(last updated August 15, 2020)

There are many ways you can adjust column width and other table settings. For precise adjustment of column width, you might want to access the Table Properties dialog box. You can do this quickly in the following manner:

  1. Position the insertion point in any cell of the table.
  2. Using the mouse, point to one of the "dotted boxes" on the ruler. These mark the boundaries of each column in the table. When you position the pointer over the box, the pointer changes to a double-headed arrow.
  3. Double-click the mouse, on the box marker. Word displays the desired dialog box.

There is also an alternative way to access the same dialog box, and you may find it easier to use. You can follow these steps:

  1. Position the mouse pointer right above a column whose width you want to change. The mouse pointer should change to a downward pointing arrow.
  2. Right-click the mouse. The table column is selected and a Context menu appears.
  3. Select Table Properties from the Context menu. The Table Properties dialog box appears, from which you can easily select the Column tab. (See Figure 1.)

    4. Figure 1. The Table Properties dialog box.

WordTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Word training. (Microsoft Word is the most popular word processing software in the world.) This tip (13311) applies to Microsoft Word 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, and Word in Office 365. You can find a version of this tip for the older menu interface of Word here: Quickly Accessing the Column Tab.

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

Separating Evens and Odds

If you have a series of values in a column, you might have a need to separate the values into even values and odd values. ...

Discover More

Inserting a Bullet

Need to place a bullet in the middle of a sentence? There are a couple of easy ways you can do this, as described in this ...

Discover More

Automatically Placing Text in a Comment

Want to automatically move the contents of a cell into a comment for that cell? It's easy enough to do by using the macro ...

Discover More

Create Custom Apps with VBA! Discover how to extend the capabilities of Office 2013 (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, and Access) with VBA programming, using it for writing macros, automating Office applications, and creating custom applications. Check out Mastering VBA for Office 2013 today!

More WordTips (ribbon)

Putting Something in Every Cell of a Table

Need to make sure that all the cells of a table have something in them? It's easy to do with a handy little macro.

Discover More

Keep Your Headings in View

Headings on a table are very important when it comes to understanding what is in the table. This tip explains an easy way ...

Discover More

Removing Leading Spaces in a Table

If you work with data imported from the Web or with documents prepared by others, you may have tables that have leading ...

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.

(Your e-mail address is not shared with anyone, ever.)

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}] 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 six minus 3?

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.

Newest Tips
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.

Links and Sharing
OUR COMPANY
OUR PRODUCTS
OUR AUTHORS
OUR SITES
 

Copyright © 2021 Sharon Parq Associates, Inc.