How to remove all formatting in Microsoft Word

There are actually a few ways to remove formatting in a Microsoft Word document. It’s not uncommon to go a little overboard on customization when creating a Word document. If you’ve applied too many formatting changes that don’t work, to avoid starting over, it may be much easier to simply clear all formatting from the selected text. How you do this may vary depending on the version of Microsoft Word you are running.

When using Microsoft Word, there is a predominant style attached to each paragraph, so any paragraph formatting changes made will also require changes to the associated style.

Clear all formatting in Microsoft Word 2010

You can easily remove all the formatting and save time without having to manually hit the undo option by following the instructions.

1. Open the formatted document.
2. Highlight all the text you want to delete by holding down the left mouse button and dragging across the formatted text. Alternatively, if you are having trouble using the mouse, you can hold down the button Change key while playing the Correct arrow key to highlight the text. To select all text, press CTRL+A anywhere in the document.
   
3. From the menu ribbon, click theHometab located to the right of theArchiveeyelash.
   
4. Within Home tab, in the “Source” section, find and click theclear formatbutton which is an icon that appears with AA and a diagonal eraser.
   

All the text you previously selected will now become the standard Word 2010 default style. If you’re not happy with the look of the default formatting, you can pressCtrl + Zto return to the formatted text option.

Remove header styling without losing formatting

Sometimes you agree with the current format but the header just doesn’t belong. To change the header while maintaining the current formatting in Word 2010:

1. Highlight the text.
2. Right click to open the menu and select Paragraph.
3. Locate “Outline Level” and change it to “Body Text.”

It’s really that simple.

Again, for those with mouse issues, an alternative way to do this is:

1. Open the Paragraph dialog box by pressing ALT+O+P.
2. On the Indents and Spacing tab, EYELASH toward Outline level drop down box and select Body text.
3. Press Get into (or TAB to OK and press Enter).

Clear all formatting in Microsoft Word 2013+

Getting rid of unwanted formatting in your Word 2013/16 document is very similar to the 2010 version. The only major difference is the appearance of the clear format icon. Now you will have only one TO along with a pink eraser running diagonally in the opposite direction.

However, if you skipped to this section and skipped over the 2010 summary, here’s a quick summary.

1. Open the document of your choice and click on the Hometab located to the right of theArchivetab at the top left.
   
2. Next, highlight the text you want to format using the left mouse button drag option and holding Change while playing Correct arrowor selecting all the text with CTRL+Awhile inside the document.
   
3. Within Fountain section of the ribbon, click the icon to clear format, It looks like an A with an eraser running through part of it.
   

All the formatting you have highlighted is now set to the default style for Microsoft Word 2013/16.

Clear all formatting using the styles panel

1. Select and highlight the text whose formatting you want to clear.
   
2. Go to Home and click the small arrow on the Styles section.
   
3. He Styles The panel should be displayed. Choose the Clear all option located at the top of the list.
   
4. All the style of the selected content will be the default Normal style.

Please note that even when using Ctrl + A To highlight the content of your Word document, you will need to clear the formatting of all content in the text boxes, headers, and footers separately.

If you are prevented from deleting any formatting from a given document, then the document can be protected against any and all formatting changes. If this is the case, you will need to first acquire the password before you can reformat any content.

Alternative way to clear all formatting regardless of Word version

When you’re working with a heavily formatted document but you still find the above information a little confusing, here’s a quick and safe way to get rid of it:

1. Highlight the text you want to format.
2. Any cut (Shift + Del) or copy (CTRL+C) the text. You can also right-click on the highlighted text and select cut or copy from the drop-down menu provided.
   
3. While you are in Windows, open thePadapplication.
   
4. Paste (CTRL+V) the highlighted text located on your clipboard in thePad. Notepad can only work with plain text and will therefore remove all current formatting and styles associated with the pasted text.
   
5. Simply copy or cut the text inPadand paste it back into your Word document. The format will now be the default version.
   

Hopefully, the above-mentioned methods proved successful in removing unwanted formatting. If it didn’t work or you know another method, please leave a comment below.