When you copy text from multiple sources into a single MS Word document, you may encounter formatting issues. Paragraphs in your document will have varying font styles, colors, line spacing, and sizes. This not only makes it look bad and unprofessional, but it also makes it difficult to read and modify. How can you apply similar formatting to the entire document or change the formatting style of specific portions in your document? This evidently, is when the feature of clear formatting comes into play. In this step-by-step post, I’ll explain what clear formatting in MS Word is and how to use it to make your work appear excellent.
Clear Formatting in Word
Clear All Formatting removes all formatting from the selected text, including font, font size, font color, alignment, and any other formatting. The keyboard shortcut Ctrl+Shift+Space removes any formatting from the selected text likewise. When you right-click on chosen text and select Clear All Formatting, a menu with further formatting options will show. The Format Painter is a tool that lets you copy the formatting of one piece of text and paste it into another. To use the Format Painter, first choose the text from which you want to copy the formatting, then click the Format Painter button, and afterwards select the text to which you want to apply the formatting.
What Is Clear Formatting
Clear formatting is a feature in Microsoft Word that allows you to erase any formatting that has been applied to the text content of your document. Font size, style, bullets, headings, text color, shadow, strikethrough, bold, italic, underlining, and any other formatting choice available in MS Word are all included. You can apply clear formatting to the entire document or to a select section of text. When you apply clear formatting to a block of text or an entire document in Microsoft Word, the text is returned to its original default font size and style, with no further formatting. It’s indeed a quick approach to reset your document style especially, to restore consistency to the layout of your material. Why Is Clear Formatting Necessary? People basically use clear formatting in MS Word for a variety of reasons. Here are a few examples.
#1. Fixes Difficult Formatting Issues
There are occasions when a paragraph contains line spacing difficulties that will not go away no matter what you do. On the contrary, a specific portion of your text may suddenly change font type. The simplest way out is to use clear formatting. Furthermore, If your paragraph’s line spacing does not return to normal after changing its settings, or however, your font style changes for certain sections of your document, markedly, simply apply clear formatting to return them to their default text style.
#2. It Saves Time.
For regular MS Word users, clear formatting is a huge time saver. You can use it to remove formatting from a specific section of your text or the entire document. This is a much faster approach than updating each text style and formatting simultaneously.
#3. Aids in the Combination of Documents
When gathering information from several websites or papers, clear formatting comes in handy. It generally features unique font styles, text sizes, colors, and line spacing. To establish consistency in your text and make it more attractive, use the same formatting style throughout. But you won’t be able to do so until you delete the present formatting style and replace it with your own. This is where clear formatting comes into play.
How to Clear Formatting in Word
You can easily clear all formatting from your text, including bold, underline, italics, color, superscript, subscript, and more, and return it to its normal formatting styles.
There are two ways to use clear formatting in Microsoft Word.
1. Clear formatting from a specific section of your text
2. Clear all formatting from your Word document
It will, on the other hand, be my pleasure to walk you through the steps of using each of these strategies.
#1. How to Clear Specific Word Formatting
Clear formatting can be used to return a specific section of your document to MS Word’s basic formatting style. Here is the procedure you must follow, step by step.
- Open the document that needs to be edited in MS Word.
- Find out which area of your paper can benefit from clear formatting.
- To open a drop-down menu, click the arrow in the corner of the Styles box.
- Select Clear Formatting to erase any styling from the specified portion of your document.
- Some styling settings, such as font colors and hyperlinks, will not be restored to the basic MS Word style.
- To return them to the default style used by the rest of the text you chose, apply clear formatting to them a second time.
This removes all formatting styles from the selected text and returns it to its basic MS Word formatting.
#2. How to Clear ALL Word Formatting
In the previous way, we learned how to use clear formatting in certain parts of your document. But what if you want it to be applied to the entire Word document? The second strategy comes in handy here.
Here’s how to apply Clear All Formatting to your Word documents step by step.
- Open the Word document you wish to work on.
- If you want to apply clear formatting to the entire document, select all of the text with your mouse or by hitting CTRL+A.
- In the upper pane of your Word document, click the Home tab and navigate to the Font section.
- Click the Clear All Formatting button to revert the entire document to the normal MS Word formatting style.
Notwithstanding the previous option, using clear all formatting removes all formatting styles from your document simultaneously, including text colors and hyperlinks. It is not necessary to apply it separately to hyperlinks or colored text.
How Do I Clear Formatting in Docs?
- Select the element. What exactly is this? Firstly, open Google Docs and choose the required document.
- Select Format > Remove formatting. At this point, pick the “Format” option from the top menu, followed by the “Clear formatting” option from the drop-down menu.
By choosing the text, heading to the “Format” menu, and selecting the “Clear formatting” option from the drop-down menu, you can clear the formatting of an element such as text. Likewise, you can achieve the same function by using the keyboard shortcut “Ctrl+.”
What Is Formatting in MS Word 2007?
Every character in the document is formatted. The formatting specifies the typeface, character size, color, and whether the character is underlined, bolded, or capitalized. It is simple to adjust the formatting, and Word provides several options for doing so.
How Do I Remove Clear Formatting?
- Open the Word document that you want to modify.
- In the ribbon at the top of the screen, select the Home tab.
- Look for and click the Clear All Formatting button (in the Font section).
- The formatting from the selected text will be deleted, and it will be reverted to its normal style.
How Do I Remove Formatting but Keep Style in Word?
CTRL-SPACE removes character-level formatting from the selected text (fonts, italics/bold, font size, and so on) while preserving paragraph formatting (indents, line spacing, and so on). CTRL-Q preserves fonts and other character formatting meanwhile reverting paragraph-level formatting to the current document’s Normal Style.
How Do I Remove Formatting From Windows?
- Select the text with the formatting you want to remove.
- Select Home > Remove All Formatting. Conversely, use Ctrl + Spacebar.
How Do I Clear Copy and Paste Formatting?
On a PC, use Ctrl-C and Ctrl-Shift-V to copy and paste without formatting. On a Mac, use Cmd-C and Cmd-V to copy and paste. Identically, on a Mac, use Cmd-C and Cmd-Opt-Shift-V to copy and paste without formatting.
Conclusion
A straightforward choice like clear formatting can be used in numerous contexts, as I’ve demonstrated in this in-depth post. You can use your mouse or keyboard shortcuts to remove formatting from a specific section of your content or the entire document. Markedly, you can equally use this option to restore your photos to their original condition. Overall, it’s a useful feature for content creators, students, professionals, and everyone who uses MS Word on a regular basis.
- How to Make Text Bigger on iPhone: Detailed Guide
- Why Can’t I Edit My Facebook Post 2023: Quick Fixes & All You Need
- When Does Target Holiday Return Policy Start? Best Easy Guide
- How to Turn Off Suggested Posts on Instagram: Detailed Guide
References
