Frequently used shortcuts

This table shows the most frequently used shortcuts in MicrosoftWord.

To do this Press
Open a document. Ctrl+O
Create a new document. Ctrl+N
Save the document. Ctrl+S
Close the document. Ctrl+W
Cut the selected content to the Clipboard. Ctrl+X
Copy the selected content to the Clipboard. Ctrl+C
Paste the contents of the Clipboard. Ctrl+V
Paste text only. Ctrl+Shift+V
Select all document content. Ctrl+A
Apply bold formatting to text. Ctrl+B
Apply italic formatting to text. Ctrl+I
Apply underline formatting to text. Ctrl+U
Decrease the font size by 1 point. Ctrl+Left bracket ([)
Increase the font size by 1 point. Ctrl+Right bracket (])
Center the text. Ctrl+E
Align the text to the left. Ctrl+L
Align the text to the right. Ctrl+R
Cancel a command. Esc
Undo the previous action. Ctrl+Z
Redo the previous action, if possible. Ctrl+Y
Zoom in. Ctrl+Plus sign (+)
Zoom out. Ctrl+Minus sign (-)
Return back to 100% zoom. Ctrl+0
Zoom in and out with mouse. Ctrl+Scroll
Split the document window. Ctrl+Alt+S
Remove the document window split. Alt+Shift+C or Ctrl+Alt+S

Close a task pane

To close a task pane using the keyboard:

1. Press F6 until the task pane is selected.

2. Press Ctrl+Spacebar.
3. Use the arrow keys to select Close, and then press Enter.
Use the Access Keys for ribbon tabs
To go directly to a tab on the ribbon, press one of the following access keys. Additional tabs might
appear depending on your selection in the document.

To do this Press
Move to the Tell Me or Search field on the Ribbon to search for assistance or Help Alt+Q, then enter
content. the search term.
Open the File page to use Backstage view. Alt+F
Open the Home tab to use common formatting commands, paragraph styles, and Alt+H
the Find tool.
Open the Insert tab to insert tables, pictures and shapes, headers, or text boxes. Alt+N
Open the Design tab to use themes, colors, and effects, such as page borders. Alt+G
Open the Layout tab to work with page margins, page orientation, indentation, and Alt+P
spacing.
Open the References tab to add a table of contents, footnotes, or a table of Alt+S
citations.
Open the Mailings tab to manage Mail Merge tasks and to work with envelopes Alt+M
and labels.
Open the Review tab to use Spell Check, set proofing languages, and to track and Alt+R
review changes to your document.
Open the View tab to choose a document view or mode, such as Read Mode or Alt+W
Outline view. You can also set the zoom magnification and manage multiple
document windows.

Work in the ribbon with the keyboard

Press

To do this
Select the active tab on the ribbon and Alt or F10. To move to a different tab, use access keys or
activate the access keys. the arrow keys.
Move the focus to commands on the Tab key or Shift+Tab
ribbon.
Move between command groupings on Ctrl+Left or Right arrow key
the ribbon.
Move among the items on the ribbon. Arrow keys
Show the tooltip for the ribbon element Ctrl+Shift+F10
currently in focus.
Activate the selected button. Spacebar or Enter
Open the list for the selected command. Down arrow key
Open the menu for the selected button. Alt+Down arrow key
When a menu or submenu is open, move Down arrow key
to the next command.
 Press

To do this
Expand or collapse the ribbon. Ctrl+F1
Open the context menu. Shift+F10

Or, on a Windows keyboard, the Windows Menu key

(between the right Alt and right Ctrl keys)
Move to the submenu when a main Left arrow key
menu is open or selected.

Navigate the document

Press

To do this
Move the cursor one word to the left. Ctrl+Left arrow key
Move the cursor one word to the right. Ctrl+Right arrow key
Move the cursor up by one paragraph. Ctrl+Up arrow key
Move the cursor down by one paragraph. Ctrl+Down arrow key
Move the cursor to the end of the current line. End
Move the cursor to the beginning the current line. Home
Move the cursor to the top of the screen. Ctrl+Alt+Page up
Move the cursor to the bottom of the screen. Ctrl+Alt+Page down
Move the cursor by scrolling the document view up by one Page up
screen.
Move the cursor by scrolling the document view down by one Page down
screen.
Move the cursor to the top of the next page. Ctrl+Page down
Move the cursor to the top of the previous page. Ctrl+Page up
Move the cursor to the end of the document. Ctrl+End
Move the cursor to the beginning of the document. Ctrl+Home
Move the cursor to the location of the previous revision. Shift+F5
Move the cursor to the location of the last revision made before Shift+F5, immediately after
the document was last closed. opening the document.
Cycle through floating shapes, such as text boxes or images. Ctrl+Alt+5, and then the Tab
key repeatedly
Exit the floating shape navigation and return to the normal Esc
navigation.
 Press

To do this
Display the Navigation task pane, to search within the Ctrl+F
document content.
Display the Go To dialog box, to navigate to a specific page, Ctrl+G
bookmark, footnote, table, comment, graphic, or other location.
Cycle through the locations of the four previous changes made Ctrl+Alt+Z
to the document.

Preview and print documents

Press

To do this
Print the document. Ctrl+P
Switch to print preview. Ctrl+Alt+I
Move around the preview page when zoomed in. Arrow keys
Move by one preview page when zoomed out. Page up or Page down
Move to the first preview page when zoomed out. Ctrl+Home
Move to the last preview page when zoomed out. Ctrl+End

Select text and graphics

Press

To do this
Select text. Shift+Arrow keys
Select the word to the left. Ctrl+Shift+Left arrow key
Select the word to the right. Ctrl+Shift+Right arrow key
Select from the current position to the beginning of the current line. Shift+Home
Select from the current position to the end of the current line. Shift+End
Select from the current position to the beginning of the current Ctrl+Shift+Up arrow key
paragraph.
Select from the current position to the end of the current paragraph. Ctrl+Shift+Down arrow
key
Select from the current position to the top of the screen. Shift+Page up
Select from the current position to the bottom of the screen. Shift+Page down
Select from the current position to the beginning of the document. Ctrl+Shift+Home
Select from the current position to the end of the document. Ctrl+Shift+End
Select from the current position to the bottom of the window. Ctrl+Alt+Shift+Page down
 Press

To do this
Select all document content. Ctrl+A

Extend a selection
Press

To do this
Start extending the selection. F8

In the extend selection mode, clicking a location in the document

extends the current selection to that location.
Select the nearest character to F8, Left or Right arrow key
the left or right.
Expand the selection. F8 repeatedly to expand the selection to the entire word, sentence,
paragraph, section, and document.
Reduce the selection. Shift+F8
Select a vertical block of text. Ctrl+Shift+F8, then press the arrow keys
Stop extending the selection. Esc

Edit text and graphics

Press

To do this
Delete one word to the left. Ctrl+Backspace
Delete one word to the right. Ctrl+Delete
Open the Clipboard task pane and enable the Office Alt+H, F, O
Clipboard, which allows you to copy and paste content
between Microsoft 365 apps.
Cut the selected content to the Clipboard. Ctrl+X
Copy the selected content to the Clipboard. Ctrl+C
Paste the contents of the Clipboard. Ctrl+V
Move the selected content to a specific location. F2, move the cursor to the destination,
and then press Enter.
Copy the selected content to a specific location. Shift+F2, move the cursor to the
destination, and then press Enter.
Define an AutoText block with the selected content. Alt+F3
Insert an AutoText block. The first few characters of the AutoText
block, and then press Enter when the
ScreenTip appears.
Cut the selected content to the Spike. Ctrl+F3
 Press

To do this
Paste the contents of the Spike. Ctrl+Shift+F3
Copy the selected text formatting. Ctrl+Alt+C
Paste the selected text formatting. Ctrl+Alt+V
Paste text only. Ctrl+Shift+V
Copy the header or footer used in the previous section of Alt+Shift+R
the document.
Display the Replace dialog box, to find and replace text, Ctrl+H
specific formatting, or special items.
Display the Object dialog box, to insert a file object into Alt+N, J, J
the document.
Insert a SmartArt graphic. Alt+N, M
Insert a WordArt graphic. Alt+N, W

Align and format paragraphs

Press

To do this
Center the paragraph. Ctrl+E
Justify the paragraph. Ctrl+J
Align the paragraph to the left. Ctrl+L
Align the paragraph to the right. Ctrl+R
Indent the paragraph. Ctrl+M
Remove a paragraph indent. Ctrl+Shift+M
Create a hanging indent. Ctrl+T
Remove a hanging indent. Ctrl+Shift+T
Remove paragraph formatting. Ctrl+Q
Apply single spacing to the paragraph. Ctrl+1
Apply double spacing to the paragraph. Ctrl+2
Apply 1.5-line spacing to the paragraph. Ctrl+5
Enable AutoFormat. Ctrl+Alt+K
Apply the Normal style. Ctrl+Shift+N
Apply the Heading 1 style. Ctrl+Alt+1
Apply the Heading 2 style. Ctrl+Alt+2
Apply the Heading 3 style. Ctrl+Alt+3
Display the Apply Styles task pane. Ctrl+Shift+S
 Press

To do this
Display the Styles task pane. Ctrl+Alt+Shift+S

Format characters
Press

To do this
Display the Font dialog box. Ctrl+D or Ctrl+Shift+F
Increase the font size. Ctrl+Shift+Right angle bracket (>)
Decrease the font size. Ctrl+Shift+Left angle bracket (<)
Increase the font size by 1 point. Ctrl+Right bracket (])
Decrease the font size by 1 point. Ctrl+Left bracket ([)
Switch the text between upper case, lower case, and title case. Shift+F3
Change the text to all upper case. Ctrl+Shift+A
Hide the selected text. Ctrl+Shift+H
Apply bold formatting. Ctrl+B
Add a bulleted list. Ctrl+Shift+L
Apply underline formatting. Ctrl+U
Apply underline formatting to the words, but not the spaces. Ctrl+Shift+W
Apply double-underline formatting. Ctrl+Shift+D
Apply italic formatting. Ctrl+I
Apply small caps formatting. Ctrl+Shift+K
Apply subscript formatting. Ctrl+Shift+Minus sign (-)
Apply superscript formatting. Ctrl+Shift+Plus sign (+)
Remove manual character formatting. Ctrl+Spacebar
Change the selected text to the Symbol font. Ctrl+Shift+Q

Manage text formatting

Press

To do this
Display all nonprinting characters. Ctrl+Shift+8 (do not use the numeric keypad)
Display the Reveal Formatting task pane. Shift+F1
Insert special characters
Press

To do this
Insert a line break. Shift+Enter
Insert a page break. Ctrl+Enter
Insert a column break. Ctrl+Shift+Enter
Insert an em dash (—). Ctrl+Alt+Minus sign (on the numeric keypad)
Insert an en dash (–). Ctrl+Minus sign (on the numeric keypad)
Insert an optional hyphen. Ctrl+Alt+Minus sign (-)
Insert a nonbreaking hyphen. Shift+Alt+Minus sign(-)
Insert a nonbreaking space. Ctrl+Shift+Spacebar
Insert a copyright symbol (©). Press (, C, )
Insert a registered trademark symbol (®). Ctrl+Alt+R
Insert a trademark symbol (™). Ctrl+Alt+T
Insert an ellipsis (…) Ctrl+Alt+Period (.)

Work with web content

Press

To do this
Insert a hyperlink. Ctrl+K
Go back one page. Alt+Left arrow key
Go forward one page. Alt+Right arrow key
Refresh the page. F9

Move around in a table

Press

To do this
Move to the next cell in the row and select its content. Tab key
Move to the previous cell in the row and select its content. Shift+Tab
Move to the first cell in the row. Alt+Home
Move to the last cell in the row. Alt+End
Move to the first cell in the column. Alt+Page up
Move to the last cell in the column. Alt+Page down
Move to the previous row. Up arrow key
 Press

To do this
Move to the next row. Down arrow key
Move one row up. Alt+Shift+Up arrow key
Move one row down. Alt+Shift+Down arrow key

Select table content

Press

To do this
Select the content in the next Tab key
cell.
Select the content in the Shift+Tab
previous cell.
Extend a selection to adjacent Shift+Arrow keys
cells.
Select a column. Select the top or bottom cell of the column, and then press Shift+Up
or Down arrow key
Select a row. Select the first or last cell in the row, and then press Shift+Alt+End or
Home.
Select the whole table. Alt+5 on the numeric keypad, with Num Lock switched off

Insert paragraphs and tab characters in a table

Press

To do this
Insert a new paragraph in a cell. Enter
Insert a tab character in a cell. Ctrl+Tab

Review a document
Press

To do this
Open the Review tab. Alt+R
Show list of comments. Alt+R+P1+L
Insert a comment. Ctrl+Alt+M
Turn change tracking on or off. Ctrl+Shift+E
Close the Reviewing Pane. Alt+Shift+C
Work with references, citations, and indexing
Use the following shortcuts to add references to your document, such as a table of contents,
footnotes, and citations.
To do this Press
Mark a table of contents entry. Alt+Shift+O
Mark a table of authorities entry (citation). Alt+Shift+I
Choose citation options. Alt+Shift+F12, Spacebar
Mark an index entry. Alt+Shift+X
Insert a footnote. Ctrl+Alt+F
Insert an endnote. Ctrl+Alt+D
Go to the next footnote. Alt+Shift+Right angle bracket (>)
Go to the previous footnote. Alt+Shift+Left angle bracket (<)

Work with mail merge and fields

To use the following keyboard shortcuts, the Mailings ribbon tab must be selected. To select
the Mailings tab, press Alt+M.

Perform a mail merge

To do this Press
Preview the mail merge. Alt+Shift+K
Merge a document. Alt+Shift+N
Print the merged document. Alt+Shift+M
Edit a mail-merge data document. Alt+Shift+E
Insert a merge field. Alt+Shift+F

Work with fields

Press

To do this
Insert a DATE field. Alt+Shift+D
Insert a LISTNUM field. Ctrl+Alt+L
Insert a PAGE field. Alt+Shift+P
Insert a TIME field. Alt+Shift+T
Insert an empty field. Ctrl+F9
Update the linked information in a Word source document. Ctrl+Shift+F7
Update the selected fields. F9
Unlink a field. Ctrl+Shift+F9
Switch between a selected field code and its result. Shift+F9
 Press

To do this
Switch between all field codes and their results. Alt+F9
Run GOTOBUTTON or MACROBUTTON from a field displaying field results. Alt+Shift+F9
Go to the next field. F11
Go to the previous field. Shift+F11
Lock a field. Ctrl+F11
Unlock a field. Ctrl+Shift+F11

Switch the document view

Press

To do this
Switch to the Read Mode view. Alt+W, F
Switch to the Print Layout view. Ctrl+Alt+P
Switch to the Outline view. Ctrl+Alt+O
Switch to the Draft view. Ctrl+Alt+N

Outline a document
These shortcuts only apply when the document is in the Outline view.

To do this Press
Promote a paragraph. Alt+Shift+Left arrow key
Demote a paragraph. Alt+Shift+Right arrow key
Demote the paragraph to body text. Ctrl+Shift+N
Move the selected paragraphs up. Alt+Shift+Up arrow key
Move the selected paragraphs down. Alt+Shift+Down arrow key
Expand the text under a heading. Alt+Shift+Plus sign (+)
Collapse the text under a heading. Alt+Shift+Minus sign (-)
Expand or collapse all text or headings. Alt+Shift+A
Hide or display the character formatting. Forward slash (/) (on the numeric
keypad)
Switch between showing the first line of body text and showing Alt+Shift+L
all body text.
Show all headings with the Heading 1 style. Alt+Shift+1
Show all headings with the specified heading level. Alt+Shift+Heading level number
Insert a tab character. Ctrl+Tab
Move through the document in Read Mode
Press

To do this
Move to the beginning of the document. Home
Move to the end of the document. End
Go to a specific page. Type the page number, then press Enter
Exit Read Mode. Esc

Zoom and adjust view

Use these shortcuts while focus is on your document to quickly adjust the zoom level.

To do this Press
Zoom in. Ctrl+Plus (+)
Zoom out. Ctrl+Minus (-)
Return to 100% zoom. Ctrl+0
Zoom in and out. Ctrl+Scroll

Use function key shortcuts

Description

Key
F1  F1 alone: displays the Word help task pane.
 Shift+F1: displays or hides context-sensitive help or the Reveal Formatting task pane.
 Ctrl+F1: displays or hides the ribbon.
 Alt+F1: moves to the next field.
 Alt+Shift+F1: moves to the previous field.

F2  F2 alone: moves the selected text or graphic. Use the arrow keys to place the cursor where
you want to move the text or graphic, and then press Enter to move, or press Esc to cancel.
 Shift+F2: copies the selected text or graphic. Use the arrow keys to place the cursor where
you want to copy the text or graphic, and then press Enter to copy, or press Esc to cancel.
 Ctrl+F2: displays the print preview area on the Print tab in the Backstage view.
 Alt+Shift+F2: saves the document.
 Ctrl+Alt+F2: displays the Open dialog box.

F3  Shift+F3: switches the selected text between upper case, lower case, and title case.
 Ctrl+F3: cuts the selected content to the Spike. You can cut multiple texts and graphics to
the Spike, and paste them as a group to another location.
 Ctrl+Shift+F3: pastes the contents of the Spike.
 Alt+F3: creates a new Building Block.

F4  F4 alone: repeats the last command or action, if possible.

 Shift+F4: repeats the last Find or Go To action.
 Ctrl+F4: closes the current document.
 Description

Key
 Alt+F4: closes Word.

F5  F5 alone: displays the Go To dialog box.

 Shift+F5: moves the cursor to the last change.
 Ctrl+Shift+F5: displays the Bookmark dialog box.
 Alt+F5: restores the document window size.

F6  F6 alone: switch between the document, task pane, status bar, and ribbon. In a document
that has been split, F6 includes the split panes when switching between panes and the task
pane.
 Shift+F6: switches between the document, ribbon, status bar, and task pane.
 Ctrl+F6: switches to the next document window when more than one document is open.
 Ctrl+Shift+F6: switches to the previous document window when more than one document is
open.
 Alt+F6: moves from an open dialog box back to the document, for dialog boxes that support
this behavior.

F7  F7 alone: displays the Editor task pane to check spelling and grammar in the document or
the selected text.
 Shift+F7: displays the Thesaurus task pane.
 Ctrl+Shift+F7: updates the linked information in a Word source document.
 Alt+F7: finds the next spelling or grammatical error.
 Alt+Shift+F7: displays the Translator task pane.

F8  F8 alone: extends the selection. For example, if a word is selected, the selection size is
extended to one sentence.
 Shift+F8: reduces the selection. For example, if a paragraph is selected, the selection size is
reduced to one sentence.
 Ctrl+Shift+F8: turns extend selection mode on and off. In the extend selection mode, the
arrow keys extend the selection.
 Alt+F8: displays the Macro dialog box to create, run, edit, or delete a macro.

F9  F9 alone: updates the selected fields.

 Shift+F9: switches between a field code and its result.
 Ctrl+F9: inserts an empty field.
 Ctrl+Shift+F9: unlinks the current field.
 Alt+F9: switches between all field codes and their results.
 Alt+Shift+F9: runs GOTOBUTTON or MACROBUTTON from a field displaying field results.

F10  F10 alone: turns KeyTips on or off.

 Shift+F10: displays the shortcut menu for the selected item.
 Ctrl+F10: maximizes or restores the document window size.
 Alt+F10: displays the Selection task pane.
 Alt+Shift+F10: displays the menu or message for available actions, for example, for pasted
 Description

Key
text or an AutoCorrect change.

F11  F11 alone: moves to the next field.

 Shift+F11: moves to the previous field.
 Ctrl+F11: locks the current field.
 Ctrl+Shift+F11: unlocks the current field.
 Alt+F11: opens the Microsoft Visual Basic for Applications editor, in which you can create
a macro using Visual Basic for Applications (VBA).

F12  F12 alone: displays the Save As dialog box.

 Shift+F12: saves the document.
 Ctrl+F12: displays the Open dialog box.
 Ctrl+Shift+F12: displays the Print tab in the Backstage view.
 Alt+Shift+F12: selects the Table of Contents button in the Table of Contents container when
the container is active.