Despite its long history, Microsoft Word continues to be the most widely used office program in the world today. Not only for its simplicity of use, but also for the amount of options it offers compared to others such as Apple Pages or Libre Office Writer. That is why this time we have made a compilation of no more and no less than 20 tricks for Microsoft Word 2018 and previous versions of the application. All the tricks described below can be used on both Mac and Windows. Many others are also compatible with the mobile versions for Android and iOS .
Download Microsoft Word 2018 for free… if we are students
The first of the tricks does not have to do with an option of the program itself, but rather a way to obtain Word for free if we are students. In this article we already explain the process to follow to activate Microsoft Word with the email of the university or institute where we are studying. Once activated, we will be able to make use of it throughout our student lives (the program will periodically check if the email used is still valid).
Add watermark to Word documents
The watermark can be very useful to ensure that our documents always save our authorship in the form of text or image. To add this mark in a document in Word, as simple as clicking on Design, Page Design and finally on Watermark . Now we can add our custom watermark.
Put a background to a document in Word
This trick is exactly the same as the previous one. The difference is that when adding the watermark in question, we must select an image that we have saved on the computer instead of a text string. We can edit it later to change its location and transparency, as well as its total size.
Write text in portrait format anywhere in the document
Sometimes writing text vertically can be ideal for adding footers in a much more visual way. In this case, it 's as easy as clicking Insert and hitting Text Box . Later, a box will appear where we can enter any text string that we want to put vertically. Now we just have to right click on the box in question and give Format shape. Finally, we will look for the Text Direction section and select the option to Rotate text 90º .
Write text anywhere in the document
Writing words, phrases or lists anywhere in a certain document is possible using the previous Text Boxes. We can also do it by double clicking anywhere on the blank sheet . The course will automatically change position and start writing in the place where we have indicated it. Without using tricks or strange elements.
Paste plain text
Who has not ever copied in a class work. The problem is that, as many of you know, pasting text from Wikipedia involves also pasting the original text format. To paste the plain text, we can do it by pasting the text in question in the Word document and then clicking on the icon that will appear similar to a clipboard . Finally, we will give the option to Keep only text or Keep only text (depending on the version).
Recover unsaved Word documents
Surely one of the most repeated searches on Google. Fortunately, there is a way to recover Word documents that have not been saved, although it is not always possible. To do this, we must go to the following path in Windows:
- C: \ Users \ YourUserName \ AppData \ Local \ Microsoft \ Office \ UnsavedFiles
There should be the lost document with the name that we have given previously. We can also do it from the File menu, specifically in the Open Recent and More section . There should show a list of all the documents that we have recently opened.
Microsoft Word keyboard commands
Microsoft's office automation program has a multitude of useful keyboard shortcuts to perform a certain number of actions with just pressing a combination of keys. In this article we already saw some of the ten most useful commands for Word. We leave you with many other tools taken from the official Microsoft website.
- Open : Control + A
- Save : Control + G
- Close : Control + R
- Cut : Control + X
- Copy : Control + C
- Paste : Control + V
- Select all : Control + E
- Bold : Control + N
- Italic : Control + K
- Underline : Control + S
- Reduce font size : Control + Alt + <
- Increase the font size : Control + Alt + Shift +>
- Justify text in the center : Control + T
- Left justify text : Control + Q
- Right Justify Text : Control + D
- Cancel : Esc
- Undo : Control + Z
- Redo : Control + Y
Create custom keyboard shortcuts and commands
We are not convinced by the above commands? We can create ours through the application itself. What we will have to do in this case is to go to the File and Options menu . Now we must click on the Customize action ribbon option and then we will be shown a list of actions that we can replicate with a simple keyboard shortcut, which we must configure from the same menu.
Install external fonts in Word
If we want to add a font that Microsoft Word does not have, we can do it very easily. First, we must download a font file with the TTF format on any of the pages that offer custom fonts. Once the file is downloaded, we will install it as if it were a normal program and it will automatically appear among the sources available in Word. To see the new one, we must restart the application.
Translate text from the application itself
Yes, the Word application includes a native translator, and the truth is that it works quite well; yes, we must have an Internet connection. To translate a certain text, we can do it by clicking on the Review menu and the Translate option . Then, it will ask us the two languages of origin and destination to make the translation as closely as possible to the real language.
Search synonyms from Word
Why resort to Google if we have a thesaurus within Microsoft Word itself. On this occasion, all we have to do is select the word that we want to replace with a synonym and right-click on it . Next we will click on Synonyms and then a list will appear with all the synonyms of the word in the language that we have previously selected. It is also applicable for languages other than Spanish.
Protect a Word document with a password
Some guy ago we taught you to protect any Windows 10 file with a password. However, we can do it without resorting to commands or programs with a Word document using the application itself. When clicking on Save as to save the document in question, a small drop-down will appear with the name of Tools . To add a password to a document we must select it and click on General Options . Now we must indicate the password that we want to put.
View in split screen document
And with split screen we do not mean the native Windows, but to see a split document from the Word application itself. To do this, we will not have to activate any option hidden in a hidden menu in Word, but press the key combination Ctrl + Alt + V . We can deactivate this view by pressing the keys that we just mentioned again.
Dictate the text so you don't have to type it
Write the text? That is a thing of the past, much better to dictate it. To do this, we must install a Microsoft extension, which can be found on the manufacturer's page. Once we have installed it in the system, we will open the program again and we will see that now a new option will appear in the upper bar of Word with the name of Dictate . It is not perfect, but at least it will save us writing a good amount of text.
Create outlines in a Word document
What would become of us without the schemes. Luckily, Word includes a tool to edit documents as if it were an outline. We can find it in the View menu in the Scheme section . Once active, all the text written in the document will take the form of an outline.
Insert date in Word document
In documents that require follow-up through dates, it is essential to add dates that are updated depending on the day we are. The process is as simple as going to the Insert menu, clicking on the Text button and finally on Date and Time . Now a box should be displayed with a set of date formats to add. In the event that we want the dates to be updated automatically, we must click on the option to Update automatically.
Insert a video into a Word document
We can also add videos to a Word document, although obviously they will not be reproduced on paper. As simple in this case as clicking on the Insert menu and then on Media . Now we can insert elements stored on our computer such as audio files or even video.
Insert a YouTube video into a Word document
The latest versions of Word also allow us to add videos online, either from YouTube, Vimeo, or any video platform. The process to follow this time is exactly identical to the previous one, the difference is that we must click on the Online Video option . Automatically a window will open with a kind of search engine to search for the video we want on the Internet.