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Home > Jan's CompLit 101 > Working with Words > AutoTools > Make Changes > Delete Text
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Jan's Working with Words

    AutoTools: Make Changes: Delete Text

If you delete text with the DELETE key, it is removed from the document and is not stored on the Office Clipboard. What you deleted is gone for good, unless you use Undo before the delete action has been moved off the Undo list.

If you cut the text, it is moved to the Office Clipboard and can be pasted in a different spot or even to a different document. The cut text is removed from your document, even if you never paste it anywhere. This is different from the way Cut works in a Windows Explorer window.

Both deleting and cutting are tracked by the Undo/Redo feature.

Icon Step-by-Step 

Step-by-Step: Delete Text

  Icon Step-by-Step
What you will learn: to select a paragraph
to select a word
to select a phrase
to delete a selection
to restore a deletion with Undo

Start with: , Icon: Class storage device, trip_planner-Lastname-Firstname.docx

Select and Delete: Paragraph

  1. Select the paragraph starting with  Your trip to Tahiti  by double-clicking in the selection area to the left of the paragraph.
  2. Delete the selection by pressing the DELETE key. Simple!

    WarningMaterial deleted this way cannot be pasted anywhere. Without an Undo feature, it would be gone for good!

Undo and Redo: Keyboard shortcuts

  1. Keyboard tip Undo  the deletion with the key combo CTRL + Z. This key combo will Undo the actions on the Undo list. 
  2. Keyboard tip Redo  the deletion with the key combo CTRL + Y.
  3. Get that paragraph back with Undo again!

Select and Delete: A Word

  1. In line 1 select the word  World  by double-clicking it.
  2. Delete it by pressing the DELETE key.
  3. Undo your deletion.

Select and Cut: a phrase

  1. In line 3 place the cursor to the left of the hyphen.

  2. Text- selection: hyphen and TahitiHold down the SHIFT key and use the arrow keys to move the cursor to the right of  Tahiti . The characters  - Tahiti  should be selected.

    Alternate Method 1: Hold the SHIFT key down and click at the end of what you want to select.
    Alternate Method 2: Drag across the text that you want to select.

  3. Keyboard tip Cut the selection with the key combo CTRL + X.
  4. Keyboard tip Click on the blank line 4 and paste what you just cut by using the key combo CTRL + V.
  5. Undo your paste and cut actions by clicking Butto: Undo (Word 2010) the Undo button twice.
  6. Icon: Experiment Experiment: Deleting
    Practice selecting words, phrases, sentences, paragraphs with different methods.
    Practice deleting and undoing the deletion.
    When you are finished practicing, close the document WITHOUT saving changes.

Your document should now be back just like it was before you started these directions. But you got to learn/practice selecting, cutting, and pasting.