When you type text in Microsoft Word, you have options for making it look a particular way on the page (such as changing the page margins), but those options are somewhat limited. Text boxes expand your formatting repertoire, offering additional control and flexibility for how your text appears. You can place a text box anywhere within a document and format it with different colors and fonts. This feature is especially helpful for creating a blockquote or a sidebar. Here's everything you need to know about creating and customizing text boxes in Word.
This article applies to Word 2019, Word 2016, Word 2013, and Word for Office 365.
Insert a Text Box in Word
How to make a Flowchart in Word. Add text to a SmartArt graphic by clicking the filler text and begin typing. Depending on how much text you add, the shape and font will automatically resize to fit. To edit text layout click the Layout Options icon that appears when you right-click a text box and pick your preferred layout. You can also. Add images to the text boxes by clicking in the text box and selecting 'Pictures' or 'Online Pictures' from the Insert menu. Modify, add text and images to a pdf for free mac. To change the appearance of the text boxes, Ctrl-click the boxes you want to change and select the appropriate option from Text Box Tools' Format menu.
Start by opening the document you want to add a text box to. Then follow the steps below.
Customize a Text Box
Once you've created your text box, you can customize it in a number of ways.
Microsoft Word is the de facto standard program for Microsoft Office documents, from research papers to professional reportsHow to Create Professional Reports and Documents in Microsoft WordHow to Create Professional Reports and Documents in Microsoft WordThis guide examines the elements of a professional report and reviews the structuring, styling, and finalizing of your document in Microsoft Word.Read More. But sometimes you have data in another program that you need to reference; it might be in Microsoft Excel, it might be a PDF, it could even be another Word document. Knowing how to import that data can save you a lot of time.
In this article, we’ll cover eight different ways you can import information into your Microsoft Word documents; some will be useful for things like reports, others will be good for form letters and similar projects, and others will just save time in a few specific situations when you need something out of the ordinary10 Simple Microsoft Word Hacks Everyone Can Do10 Simple Microsoft Word Hacks Everyone Can DoOur knowledge about Microsoft Word is tested every time we get a document to work on. Every little tip learnt along the way helps. How about ten more tricks for your daily productivity?Read More.
Since Microsoft Excel is the most versatile resource to import data from, we’ll start there.
Import a Table From Microsoft Excel
Formatting tables in Microsoft Word8 Formatting Tips for Perfect Tables in Microsoft Word8 Formatting Tips for Perfect Tables in Microsoft WordMicrosoft Word tables are essential formatting tools. Find out how to make a table and format it perfectly with these simple tips.Read More is terrible. That’s why Microsoft Excel exists, right? Fortunately, Microsoft had the foresight to let you include tables directly from Excel into your Word document so you can do all the formatting in Excel, where it’s a lot easier.
To get started, select the cells you want to copy in Microsoft Excel, hit Edit > Copy, and head back over to Microsoft Word.
Go to Edit > Paste Special… (or right-click and select Paste Special…) and select Paste Link in the left sidebar. In the As… menu, select Microsoft Excel Worksheet Object, then hit OK.
You’ll now see the cells you selected right in your Microsoft Word document. And because you selected Paste Link instead of Paste, those cells will update whenever you make changes in your Microsoft Excel spreadsheet.
If you select Paste instead of Paste Link, your cells won’t update when you make changes in the spreadsheet. It does have the advantage, however, of working whether the Excel sheet is present or not. So if you’re not going to need updates — if you’re printing, or you’re going to email the file to someone else and it needs to show the correct data, for example — you might want to use Paste.
Flow Text Box In PublisherImport a Single Cell From Microsoft Excel![]()
You can also use the same method as above for individual cells:
In this case, instead of selecting Microsoft Excel Worksheet Object, I selected Unformatted Text; this is why the number comes in with the same formatting as the rest of the Microsoft Word document. It still updated in the same way, but you don’t have to deal with trying to get the text box in the right place.
You can use this same strategy with an entire table, if you want to keep the formatting consistent with your Word document, too. If this isn’t working, or you need a more complicated behavior from your single cell, you can try using Visual Basic to integrate Excel dataHow to Integrate Excel Data Into a Word DocumentHow to Integrate Excel Data Into a Word DocumentDuring your work week, there are probably lots of times that you find yourself copying and pasting information from Excel into Word, or the other way around. This is how people often produce written reports..Read More into your Word document.
Import a Graph or Chart From Microsoft Excel
Like importing a table, it can be very convenient to import a graph or chart from Microsoft Excel into Word, so that it automatically updates whenever you make changes to the Excel spreadsheet. This could be especially useful if you have to create regular reports that include graphs. Fortunately, Microsoft has made this process extremely easy: just copy and paste the graph from Microsoft Excel into Word.
You can also click and drag the graph from Microsoft Excel to Word to embed it in the file. Either way you go, the chart will now automatically update whenever you make changes to the original spreadsheet.
Mail Merge From Microsoft Excel
A mail merge lets you create a large number of letters, labels, envelopes, or just about anything else in Microsoft Word using data from Excel. Brad’s article on how to mail merge with Microsoft Excel and WordHow to Print Labels with Mail Merge in Microsoft Word and ExcelHow to Print Labels with Mail Merge in Microsoft Word and ExcelAre you still using copy-and-paste to create labels, name badges, or other personalized mass communications? Mail Merge, a simple Microsoft Office automation tool, will let you print your labels in seconds.Read More covers the topic in more detail than I ever could, but the short version is that you’ll use Tools > Mail Merge Manager to select your data source and create the template in Microsoft Word.
If you’re using an older version of Microsoft Office, this mail merge tutorial using Office 2007Automate Office With Mail Merge to Create Professional Address Labels, Name Badges, and MoreAutomate Office With Mail Merge to Create Professional Address Labels, Name Badges, and MoreAre you still using copy&paste to create labels, name badges, or otherwise customized documents? Let us show you a simple Microsoft Office automation tool that will save you hours!Read More might be of use, and you can even use mail merge for mass emailings in OutlookHow to Send Personalized Mass Emails in Outlook With Mail MergeHow to Send Personalized Mass Emails in Outlook With Mail MergeRead More. It can take a while to get the hang of using mail merge, but once you get it, it will be one of the most useful tools in your Office arsenal.
Importing PDF Files
A quick word of warning: when you import a PDF into Microsoft Word, it basically comes in as an image file, and not text. If you want to be able to select or modify text, you’ll need to copy and paste it from the PDF file. If, however, you just want to embed a PDF in your Microsoft Word document, hit Insert > Object, then select From File… and choose your PDF.
How To Add An Auto Flow Text Box In Word For Mac
You’ll end up with the PDF embedded like this:
It’s not great for text-based PDFs, but if there are images in the file, it’s easier than copying and pasting or finding a way to turn the PDF into an image file to insert it into your Microsoft Word document.
Automatically Importing Text from Other Word Documents
If you need to type the same thing on a regular basis, you might be able to save time by putting it in a Microsoft Word document and simply referencing it from another document.
Let’s say you have a bunch of form letters that you need to send that all need to include your name and the company you work for, but your employer changes on a regular basis. You don’t want to change every letter whenever you get a new contract, so you can just store your signoff in one document and have all the others update whenever you make a change.
Going through an example will help make this more clear. Here’s an “updateable text” document that I’ve saved:
I want to include each of these — a signoff, contact information, and a quote — in each of the letters. To do this, I’ll create a bookmark on each one. To create a bookmark, highlight the text you want to link in other documents, then click Insert > Bookmark.
Type in the name of your bookmark and click Add.
Now, save the file and make a note of the full path to where it’s saved. To insert your saved text, go to another Microsoft Word document and hit Insert > Field. Select IncludeText from the Field Names menu.
Now, in the text box below the menu, type “INCLUDETEXT “[path to the file]” [name of the bookmark]”. When I typed it, it looked like this:
(If you’re using Windows, you’ll need to use the standard notation for paths, which starts with “C:”. Note that you need to include two backslashes between each section instead of one.) Now hit OK, and you’ll see the text inserted into your document.
Every once in a while, you’ll type something wrong, and you’ll get an error, like this one:
To fix it, right-click anywhere on the error and select Toggle Field Codes — this will let you see and edit the codes from inside the document. You can also use this on fields that are working correctly if you need to make a change.
From here, you can make any fixes you need to. In this example, there’s an extra equals sign at the beginning of the code.
After removal of the equals sign, the field works correctly.
To make a change across all of the documents that you’ve linked to your bookmark, go back to your common text file, and simply make the changes. Here, I’ve replaced the Groucho Marx quote with one from Oscar Wilde.
In your other documents, right-click on the field that has been updated, and select Update Field.
And, there you have it, the field updates with the new information.
This might seem like a lot of work, but if you have to type the same things on a regular basis, it could save you a huge amount of time in the long run. It takes some setup time on the front end, but you’ll see the convenience of this system immediately. Don’t forget to check out other useful Office automations with IFTTTHow to Automate Microsoft Office Tasks with IFTTT RecipesHow to Automate Microsoft Office Tasks with IFTTT RecipesIFTTT, the automation service that will complete an action once another condition is met, now has 50 task recipes for Microsoft Office. We show you how it works and offer a selection of recipes.Read More to save time, too.
Import Text from a Text File or Microsoft Word Document
If you want to get text from a text file or Word document, but don’t want to open it, select everything, copy it, go back to your document, and paste it (this can take a long time if you have hundreds of pages of text), you can import directly. Just hit Insert > File and select the text file or Word document you want to import text from.
After you’ve selected the file (you may have to change the Enable dropdown to All readable documents), you’ll see the full text in your Microsoft Word document.
Import Text from a Web Page
If you want to keep an updated copy of a web page in a Microsoft Word document, you can do that too! Let’s say I want to an online text file containing A Tale of Two Cities in my document. I’ll use the same INCLUDETEXT field, but instead of using a local path, I’ll use the URL:
Updating the field brings the entire book into my document.
You’ll get the best results with a text-heavy website. You can see what happens when I try to use INCLUDETEXT to bring in MakeUseof’s home page:
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If you have a need for importing the updated text from a website into your document, this is definitely worth playing around with. You might have to experiment a bit, but it could potentially be a very useful tool.
What Do You Import Into Microsoft Word?
We’ve covered eight different things you can import into Microsoft WordYes, Get Microsoft Word for Free: Here Is HowYes, Get Microsoft Word for Free: Here Is HowDon't want to pay for the full Microsoft Word experience? Don't worry, here are some ways how you can use Microsoft Word for free.Read More here — but there are probably more options out there. What have you imported into Microsoft Word? Share the most useful things you’ve been able to import, so we can all help each other save some time by becoming Word masters10 Essential Microsoft Word Routines You Have to Know10 Essential Microsoft Word Routines You Have to KnowThe word 'routine' is the very image of boring. Except when it comes to a productivity app like Microsoft Word. Every second saved adds to the comfort of using it for our daily needs.Read More!
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