Formatting Text

Font Formatting

On the Home tab set font family, size, bold/italic/underline, and color:

Ctrl+B   bold
Ctrl+I   italic
Ctrl+U   underline
Ctrl+Shift+>  increase size
Ctrl+Shift+<  decrease size

Paragraph Formatting

• Alignment - left, center, right, justified (Layout-aligned edges).
• Line spacing - 1.0 to 3.0; 1.5 reads well for reports.
• Before/After spacing - space above and below paragraphs instead of pressing Enter twice.
• Indents - left, right and first-line indents on the ruler.

Copy Formatting

Use the Format Painter (Home → paintbrush icon): select formatted text, click the painter, then drag over the target text. Double-click the painter to apply to many places, then press Esc.

Clear Formatting

Select the text and choose Clear All Formatting (the eraser icon) to return to the document defaults.

Find and Replace

Ctrl+F   find
Ctrl+H   find and replace
Ctrl+G   go to page/line

Replace is ideal for fixing a repeated name or term across 50 pages.

Key Points

• Format paragraphs, not characters - alignment and spacing live on paragraphs.
• Format Painter copies look-and-feel without retyping.
• Consistent font choices (one heading font, one body font) make documents professional.