Select text - Microsoft Support (2024)

FAQs

How do you select non consecutive text in a document responses? ›

For example, select some text. Press and hold CTRL. Select the next item that you want. Important Be sure to press and hold CTRL while you select the next item that you want to include in the selection.

Check Word Options: There might be settings in Word that are affecting this functionality. Go to File > Options. Under the 'Advanced' tab, check the options in the 'Editing options' section. Make sure that options like 'Allow text to be dragged and dropped' are checked.

Click anywhere within the document. Press Ctrl+A on your keyboard to select all text in the document.

Select text by holding down SHIFT and pressing the key that moves the insertion point. To select multiple areas that aren't next to each other, make your first selection, hold down CTRL, and then select any other items you want.

To select non-consecutive files or folders, press and hold down the Ctrl key, and left-click each item that you want to select.

But the two most common causes of the "selection is locked" message are (1) an unactivated version of Office and (2) a document that is protected in some way, usually for forms using legacy form fields.

Method 1: Use rand()

To insert localized sample text in Word, type =rand() in the document where you want the text to appear, and then press ENTER.

Press Ctrl and A together. This shortcut will highlight all of the text in your document. Now you can copy, delete, or apply formatting changes to the whole document quickly. Selecting all gives you the power to edit large chunks of text or make consistent changes across your document.

Ctrl+N is a keyboard shortcut used in technology, computing, programming, internet, and communications to create a new document, window, or instance within various applications. It is widely used to increase productivity and quickly start fresh tasks without disrupting existing ones.

When you open a document in Reading view, you can select text a line at a time by dragging the mouse (not double-clicking). Then, press Ctrl+C (Windows) or ⌘+C (Mac) to copy text. You can paste the contents of the clipboard outside the document.

Why am I not able to select text in Word? ›

Several reasons can make you can't highlight text in Microsoft Word, such as lack of permissions, staying in compatibility mode, document protection, etc.

Selecting the text is a very common and frequently used operation. It is used many times and in many ways. For example, If you need to delete text (Specific or whole paragraph) then you need it to select first. Similarly, In many operations Selection of the text is the basic operation or minimum requirement first.

Select all of the text in your document or on your screen by holding down the "Ctrl" key and pressing the letter "A".

Select the row number to select the entire row. Or click on any cell in the row and then press Shift + Space. To select non-adjacent rows or columns, hold Ctrl and select the row or column numbers.

How do you select non-consecutive text in a document? To select multiple pieces of text, you must select the first piece of text, and then press and hold CTRL as you select the next piece of text. Press and hold CTRL to continue selecting more pieces of text anywhere in the document.