In this tutorial, you’ll learn how to find and delete in Word. The steps below will work with all versions of Microsoft Word on Windows and Mac.

Let’s get started!

How To Find And Delete In Word?

To find and delete in Word, press Ctrl+H, insert a word or phrase in Find what, and leave the Replace with field blank. Finally, click the Replace All button.

Here’s how to find and delete in Word:

Step 1: Press Ctrl+H

The first step is to open the Find and Replace tool in Word.

There are two ways to do that:

1. Use a shortcut key
2. Pick the tool from the toolbar

Use a shortcut key

Simply press Ctrl+H to open the Find and Replace tool in Word.

Pick the tool from the toolbar

Select the Home tab from the toolbar. The Find and Replace tool is in the last column in the second row, labeled as Replace.

In the Find and Replace tool, you’ll see three tabs: Find, Replace, and Go To. Make sure the Replace tab is selected.

Step 2: Enter a word or phrase in Find what

There are two fields in the tool: Find what and Replace with.

In the Find what field, enter a word, phrase, or anything you want to delete.

Make sure to include a space at the end of the word or phrase.

It is important to leave a space at the end of the word or the phrase, or else additional space will be left once the words are deleted (More on this in Step 4).

Step 3: Leave the Replace with field blank

Leave the “Replace” field blank.

Because we want to find and delete the word, we’ll leave the Replace field empty.

This will find that word and replace it with nothing, i.e. delete it.

Step 4: Click the Replace or Replace All button

Now, either click the Replace or Replace All button to find and delete the word from the document.

When deleting words, it’s best to use Replace rather than Replace All. This allows you to go through each item word before deleting it.

Note: You can undo an action by pressing Ctrl+Z.

However, if you wish to remove the word from the entire document, simply click the Replace All button.

Why is it necessary to add a space at the end of the word or the phrase?

To avoid an unnecessary space after deleting the word.

For example:

This is a demo text: How are you?

And let’s say I want to find “are” in the sentence and delete it.

To do so, press Ctrl+H, enter “are” in the Find what field, and press the Replace button.

Without leaving a space after the word “are”: How you?

Notice that extra space between the word How and you? That’s why it is necessary to enter a space after the word.

Now, let’s see what happens if we leave a space after the word “are”

By leaving a space after the word “are”: How you?

Perfect! No extra space 🙂

Conclusion

Using the Find and Replace tool in Microsoft Word, you may quickly find and delete a word or phrase.

Simply type the word you wish to delete in the Find what field and leave the Replace field blank.

Make sure to leave a space after the word or the phrase you’ve entered.

Then, click the Replace button.