working with shapes in ms word

On the right side of the “Design” tab you will find essential tools for altering your data and you can also go back and completely change the type of chart you’re using. Add bullets and numbers: You can easily turn text into a bulleted or numbered list as follows: Right … Select an object that is under other objects and cycle backward through the stack of objects. If you look at our previous example, you can see we applied an embossed, shiny effect and changed the colors of our text boxes and arrow. In the pane or dialog box that opens, enter the amount to rotate the object in the Rotation box. 3D Models and Icons are a relatively new addition to Word … Charts are a great way to visually display data sets and Word 2013 comes jam packed with a large assortment of Charts to choose from, including columns, pie, bar charts and much, much more. So, when I ungrouped them the text frames goes behind the colored retangles. In the following image, you see these controls, many of which you will likely be familiar with. Select a shape. When working with shapes in any Office application, it’s always useful to use gridlines to make sure everything is sized and placed correctly. Draw Your Own Text Box. Complicated and repeated operations can be done one-time processing in seconds. When you click on an image in your document, you get a box on each corner, which will let you resize a picture. Switch over to the “Insert” tab on Word’s Ribbon, and then click the “Text Box” button. On the left side of the “Format” tab you can select any of your shapes and change them to another, and also make them larger or smaller. The Group button is enabled for two or more … When you set an object’s text wrapping to be in line with text, Word treats the object in question as a text character. Clicking on “See more…” at the bottom of the “Layout Options” opens the full-blown “Layout” dialog. Microsoft Word 2013 comes with an array of built-in shapes, which you can use to create callouts, boxes, stars, and other shapes. Use Shapes (index), where index is the name or the index number, to return a single Shape object. There is so many things that you can do to customize your Word document. How to choose a shape outline and shape fill in Word 2013. Merge and combine multiple Word files across folders into one with your desired order. Here we see those controls. While you may not need shapes in every document you create, they can add visual appeal. Need to create a diagram showing a timeline or process? In this Microsoft Word tutorial, we look at using Icons, 3D Models and Charts in Microsoft Word. It doesn’t sound like much, but they can be a fantastic way to not only save tons of time and create consistently formatted documents, but quickly apply themes that will instantly affect the entire appearance of your documents, as well as create templates that you can later use over and over again! You can also insert pictures from your Facebook profile or Flickr although you could always just save the pictures you want to insert to your computer and then insert them from there if you don’t want to connect Office to these profiles. Insert multiple images across folders into Word document at once. When you use the screenshot function, it will let you choose between any currently open windows, or you can select “Screen Clipping,” which will minimize Word allowing you to take a selection or full shot of your desktop. You insert a connector to link two of the shapes. The shapes will reorder themselves. You can still get very professional looking results if you know what’s in your toolbox and how to use it. Note however, some data points, such as “breakfast,” “lunch,” and “dinner” aren’t represented on this chart. There are also the usual grab handles needed to resize the image, and the “Layout Options” allowing you to wrap text to your preference. Simply hover over any of the built-in options to see how it would look utilizing a different layout. Choose from various “Theme Colors” or select your own. These include “WordArt Styles” and other effects suchs as fill and outline. The result is a bit more striking and while it’s not likely to make it into any final designs, it does give you an idea of what you can do with WordArt. Select Rotate, and then select More Rotation Options. Where you position and how you wrap text will also play a large role in formatting your documents. You select one of the shapes, and you move the shape to a different location. Inserting Shapes into Microsoft Word. Choose one of the following: Distribute Horizontally To center the objects horizontally. With this drawing canvas, you can create drawings using these shapes allowing you to create things like diagrams and flowcharts. On the left half of the “Design” tab, you can “Create Graphic” so you can add shapes, bullets, text, and move things around. Right-click anywhere in your shape and click the “Add Text” command. The “SmartArt Tools” features two tabs: “Design” and “Format.” Let’s cover each one and its features. However, if you’re going to produce something WYSIWYG (What You See is What You Get), such as for a PDF or print publication, then these things will definitely matter. The Format tab appears.The Format tab 2. Left-click your mouse and while holding it down, drag your mouse until the shape is the desired size. You can add a variety of shapes to your document, including arrows, callouts, squares, stars, and flowchart shapes. The “Layouts” section lets you change how your graphic looks on the fly. This website uses cookies to measure and analyze our traffic. If you want to add proofing tools, such as spellcheck, grammar check, and/or screen tooltips, then you may be able to simply download them for free. ©1998-2020 Goodwill Community Foundation, Inc. All rights reserved. Release the mouse button. We know it’s been a lot to absorb but you’ll see that after a while, this stuff is a cinch! Once you get the hang of one skill, the rest is pretty similar and comes easier. Right now, when you try to select both the shape and the picture, it won’t work. One of those things is adding shapes. Both “Pictures” and “Online Pictures” accomplish the same goal. Word's large shape collection allows you to organize and design the image you want. In this Microsoft Word 2016 Tutorial, we will learn that how you can use Drawing Tools to draw shapes . Go to Picture Format or Picture Tools Format > Group > Group. If you drag the sizing handles on any of the four corners, you will be able to change the height and width at the same time. You can bring a shape to the front or send it to the back. Enjoy the videos and music you love, upload original content, and share it all with friends, family, and the world on YouTube. If you bring the cursor back to your point of origin, Word closes and fills the shape. It doesn’t matter if you get it perfect or just the way you want it because you can adjust it to your heart’s content once it is placed in your document. Beyond that, you can arrange multiple layers by sending them forward and backward. In this case, let’s draw a cloud. Say, for instance, we want to write How-To Geek School and enhance it so that it is size 48 pt., blue with a black 1 pt. I have to move the shape to get to the text frame beneath. From top-to-bottom, you get “Layout options” so you can set your text wrapping. Select the desi… This is useful if you want to present something “as is” in your work, be able to make overarching changes to the document’s formatting, but have something you’ve pasted remain unchanged. Who doesn’t like charts? I've tried all the tips I've found here, (Select object, Send to Back, or Send Behind text) Nothing works. Press and hold Ctrl while you click the shapes. Drop caps are simply that one letter at the beginning of a chapter or book that is larger than the rest: You can either make your drop cap “Dropped” (the text below it shifts underneath it) or “In Margin.” Check out the “Drop Cap” options for more power over how your drop caps behave. I can make shapes, but I cannot merge them. In our final lesson, Lesson 5, we will cover styles, templates, and themes. The right half of the “Format” tab allows you to pick from a number of “SmartArt Styles” and you can also “Change Colors.”. Resolution Microsoft Equation helps you add fractions, exponents, integrals, and so on to Word documents. Click the paint bucket icon on the top-left. Using the “Design” tab, if you don’t like the colors or style of your chart, you can instantly apply changes to it without having to generate a new one. If you want to change your decision later on, select the 'Cookie Policy' link in the footer. To draw using the Scribble tool, click Insert > Shapes > Scribble. It is like a document within a document. This is only a fraction of the stuff you can do, so if you to add some really nice looking effects and create a nice looking document that really pops, you should take your time to familiarize yourself with everything. So, if you think a pie chart would work better, you can change to that. For example, you can correct brightness and contrast, the color, add a border. Additionally, you will learn how to apply 3D effects to shapes. Also, there are a couple ways you make changes to your pictures inline, such as resizing, rotating, and moving them. The “Screenshot” feature will allow you to take a screen clip, which is automatically pasted in you document. In some cases, the ordering option you select will not affect the ordering of the shapes. The pane titled, “Format Text Effects,” slides out from the right edge. In this scenario, the connector does not move with the shape. Shift+Tab after you select the top object. Click and drag the mouse until the shape is the desired size. Use flowchart shapes. "Press SHIFT, click the circle shape on the slide, release SHIFT to select both shapes, click the DRAWING TOOLS FORMAT tab on the Ribbon, click the Merge Shape button in the Insert Shapes Group, then point to Union. We've selected a cloud in the Callout section. He's covered Windows, Android, macOS, Microsoft Office, and everything in between. Sizing handles indicate that a shape or object has been selected. Go to Shape Format, Drawing Tools or Picture Tools > Format. He's even written a book. Select the type of shape you want to add from the drop-down menu that appears. To arrange a group with shapes, text boxes, or WordArt equally, select Shape Format or Drawing Tools > Format. We’ll wrap the lesson by changing gears a bit and discussing how to use more than one language in Word 2013. Further, you can adjust how the emedded video thumbnail appears (as a picture) using the “Picture Tools” so you can make adjustments to the color, add a border, correct the contrast and brightness, and more. If that doesn't select it, go to Home > Select and do one of the following: The following example horizontally flips shape one on the active document. Confirm that the object … These are grouped. You start building an equation by opening Microsoft Equation : To insert an equation in your document, on the Insert tab, in the Symbols group, click the arrow next to Equation : For a shape to be seen, it needs to have an outline, a fill, or both. So you see, we simply applied a “picture style” and add a purple border. If one shape overlaps another, you may need to change the ordering so the correct shape appears in front. In a Microsoft Word document, you insert several shapes. To still work with an individual item in the group, select the group, and then select the item. Word allows you to do much more than simply insert or place graphics. Simply pick an arrangement, such as a list, process, or cycle. It’s easy also to affect changes inline too. While it’s not a feature-complete or robust as a professional page layout program such as Adobe InDesign. Kutools For Word - More Than 100 Advanced Features For Word, Save Your 50% Time. outline. Select the shape. We simply select the text we want, increase to the size to 48, then in the “Format Text Effects” dialog, we can change the color (we can also do this in the “Font” section of the “Home” tab. In the Arrange group, select Align. for the outline width. Click or tap the object to select it. To use shapes effectively, you'll need to know how to insert a shape and format it by changing its fill color, outline color, and shape style, as well as add 3D effects. You can also draw your own text box if you already have a size and placement in mind. Finally, “Shape Effects” has quite a few options for enhancing your shapes, many of which will give them a cool 3D effect that you can adjust by clicking 3D Options at the bottom of the of the menu. As you can see, we created a graphic based on a “Continuous Block Process.” When we click on the text boxes, we can edit what is inside. Changes to the layout are not applied unless you first click on a style. In Word 2016, however, drawing lines and shapes is problematic unless you draw them on the drawing canvas. The default fill color comes from the color scheme that’s in use; it’s the Accent 1 color (the fifth color from the left in the color palette). There are many text frames and shapes included. Open MS Word and insert a picture in the document. To move the image, hover the mouse over the image until the pointer is the four arrows, you can then click and drag the image anywhere you like. In our documents, we don’t worry so much about word wrapping or positioning because Word isn’t the final step toward publishing online. You can find it in the upper-left corner of the formatting … To make the gridlines appears, head over to the “View” tab and tick the “Gridlines” checkbox. If you click on “Shape Styles” you will be able to choose from a selection of pre-defined shapes and colors. Matt Klein has nearly two decades of technical writing experience. Click the desired shadow effect to add it to your shape. Select the desired ordering option. When you choose a shape, you simply draw it on a blank space on the page. Select multiple shapes with text. You may find them extremely convenient and that’s perfectly fine, but if you want something that conforms to your document’s style and formatting, but still place it in a box or have a border around it, then we recommend simply adding a border, which we covered in Lesson 2 – Shading and Borders. You don’t have to think of Word as simply a word processing program. You can select Shadow Options from the drop-down menu and click the Color button to select a different shadow color for your shape. Note also that the dialog is split into functions, “Text Fill and Outline” and “Text Effects.” “Text Fill and Outline” is simple enough to figure out, and is used to enhance how text appears. Then under “Text Outline” we choose “Solid line” and choose block and 1 pt. From here, you can write in the language, but Word won’t display in it, in other words, menus and help systems will still appear in the default language. How-To Geek is where you turn when you want experts to explain technology. Whenever you click on a chart in your document, you’ll get the “Chart Tools,” which, as you might have guessed, is the Ribbon tab devoted solely to charts. If you want to work with several shapes at the same time or with shapes within the selection, use a ShapeRange collection. Add shapes in Microsoft Word In Microsoft Word, click the Insert tab at the top of the program window. Moreover, most languages are freely available to use system-wide so actually creating a document in another language is well within your reach, for free. Shapes and lines are a great way to illustrate ideas in Office 2016 documents. When you open a Microsoft Office Word 2010 or Word 2007 document that contains a picture or an object, the picture or the object may not appear. If you decide you don’t think the layout works for this particular type of data, change it using “Quick Layout” or add another element such as another axis, chart title, gridlines, and more. By submitting your email, you agree to the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. On the other hand, if you don’t like your changes and you want to go back to the default, simply click “Reset Picture” and it will revert to normal. Note, the size tab both on the Ribbon the “Layout” dialog allows you to specifically resize, rotate, and scale your pictures, rather than relying wholly on winging it: We’d like to spend the whole day talking about formatting images in Word, but as you can see, there’s a ton of options at your disposal. When you add a language, you will need to enable it, which means that you will have to turn it on in the “Control Panel.”. Here are few more text features that you might want to be aware of though you will probably rarely use them. Worksheets(1).Shapes.Select Set sr = Selection.ShapeRange In Microsoft Excel, the Index argument is not optional for the Range property of the Shapes collection, so you cannot use this property without an argument to create a ShapeRange object containing all shapes in a Shapes collection. Turning to the right side of the “Format” tab, you are given options for adding and changing WordArt, arranging elements, and adjusting the size of your chart (which you can also do with the grab handles). Move your cursor over the styles to see a live preview of the style in your document.Previewing shape styles 4. Format the Outline of an Auto Shape: Adjust the style of the object's outline. The “Layout” dialog pops out if you select the little arrow in the bottom-right corner of the “size” section or you can choose more options from any of the drop-down menus including “Position”, “Align”, and “Rotate.”. There’s a myriad of ways you can take and add screenshots, so we’re not going to dwell on it. Click the More drop-down arrow in the Shape Styles group to display more style options.The More drop-down arrow 3. This places an insertion point in the shape where you can type your text. We’ll cover the basics so that you’re more aware of them. That looks pretty good, but we really want it to pop, let’s add some more text effects, such as a shadow, a reflection, and we’ll add a bit of a 3d bezel to round the lettering out. To insert a shape: Select the Insert tab. 1. When you click on a chart in your document, formatting controls appear along the upper-right corner. All Rights Reserved. Move your mouse over the menu options to see a live preview of the shadow effect in your document. Your cursor is now a cross shape. This behavior occurs because the connector is not connected to the shape. Left-click a shape from the menu. 3-D Rotation gives the appearance that you are viewing the object from a different angle, and it can be applied to any shape. Select multiple shapes. With a simple picture or chart, you can turn your term paper from meh to yeah! The “Chart Tools” also give you a “Format” tab so you can dress things up a bit by adding shapes and then being able to change the style, fill, and outline. If you want to refine the outline around your shape(s), you can choose any color, weight, or dashes. To see what languages are available for purchase, and how much, click on “Not installed” and you will be whisked to the Microsoft Office website. While it’s not a feature-complete or robust as a professional page layout program such as Adobe InDesign. Check out the screenshot for an idea of just how many options there are: When you choose a style, you’ll get a spreadsheet, which will allow you to enter the data points on your x and y axes. You can change chart elements with the plus (+) symbol, so if you want to change chart titles, add gridlines, and stuff like that. Think of SmartArt as premade drawing canvases that you can insert into your document and then customize as you like. You can insert “Online Video” such as Bing, YouTube, or video embed code into your document. For more information about the cookies we use, see our Terms of Use. Text boxes are like their own little islands in Word. Click the Shape command. You don’t have to think of Word as simply a word processing program. By default, shapes you draw have both. From the drop-down menu, you can change the outline. Click, hold, and drag the mouse to draw the shape. On the Insert tab, in the Illustrations group, click the Shapes option. When you insert an image in a Microsoft Word document, resize and position it to customize the document layout and choose how the text appears around the image, for example, have it seamlessly wrap around the photo. If you use SmartArt, note that the Ribbon changes to reflect this. Bevel adds thickness and a rounded edge to shapes, but it doesn't work with every type of shape. Download the example to work along with the video. You can in effect doodle on the page and give readers another insight into what you want to explain. While it’s doubtful you’ll be using Word in full multilingual mode, it’s nice to know how you can affect those changes. You can also move a shape in front of or behind text. As always, when you want to edit a picture or any element place in a Word document, you can click on it and the appropriate tab will appear on the Ribbon. Let’s take a closer look at this because it contains a pretty sizable amount of features. If this happens, select the same option again or try a different option. Go to Shape Format or Drawing Tools Format > Group > Group. By default, when you insert images and other illustration objects into your document, Word applies one of two forms of text wrapping: “in line with text” (for images and most other illustration objects) or “in front of text” (for shapes and 3D models). So for example, if you want to simply insert a shot of your desktop and its icons, you would first need to minimize everything you have open. Just note this feature, if you’re unfamiliar with adding screenshots, and you want an easy way to do it in Word. The right side of the “Format” tab is used for affecting changes to text. Luckily, there’s a whole range of ways you can add images to better illustrate (no pun intended) your point. When you embed a video, it will appear as if it is a regular picture, complete with grab handles and text wrap controls. Every time I try to search for the answer, it's only showing PP2016 explanations, which are not helpful for MS Word16. To change shape style: Select the shape. We’ve got a full guide on working with pictures, shapes, and graphics in Microsoft Word if you’re interested in learning more about that. What we mean is, when you add a “Text Box” to your documents, it is immune to changes you make to the rest of the document. Join 350,000 subscribers and get a daily digest of news, geek trivia, and our feature articles. Since we launched in 2006, our articles have been read more than 1 billion times. Select objects, shapes, pictures or text boxes, to change or move them. Open the Word “Options” and click on “Language.”, Pick the language you want to add from the dropdown list and then click the “Add” button. Select the object to rotate. You can insert a picture by dragging & dropping it, or you can use the Insert menu. /en/word2010/working-with-hyperlinks/content/. This is the protocol used by MS Word to insert, edit and work with external objects when you import them into your local Ms Word document. The paintbrush icon is for setting a style and color them, and finally, the sieve icon is for “Chart Filters,” so you can edit data points and names on your chart. It has requisite tools for doing some pretty nifty page layout. As you enter data, the chart will change. For the most part, text boxes are something of a bane to an editor’s existence because they don’t play nice with styles (Lesson 5). The sizing handles on the top or bottom of the shape will only allow you to resize vertically, while the handles on the left and right sides will resize the shape horizontally. To get the full multilingual experience, you may need to purchase a language pack from Microsoft. Finally, if you click on the little “Layout Options” button, you can change your text wrapping without going to the Ribbon. The only difference is that “Pictures” means you can insert pictures locally, while “Online Pictures” allows you to insert images from an internet-based source such as clip art from Office.com, Bing, or OneDrive (formerly SkyDrive). As with any other panes in Word 2013, it can be detached, which you can then stick out of the way to save screen area, or keep it nearby so it is handy. You an also use pictures, gradients, and textures for even more fill options. Before we get to those positioning tools, though, you should know a bit about text wrapping. Working with Pictures, Shapes, and Graphics, How to Create and Use Memoji on Apple Watch, How to Battle Your Friends in ‘Pokémon Sword and Shield’, © 2020 LifeSavvy Media. Next, insert a shape from the Insert menu. Use a line. Note in the screenshot, the previously mentioned little “handles” you can use to resize and rotate your shapes. If you want to produce content in a language other than the one that comes with Word by default, you will likely need to purchase it. At the top, in the middle, is a circular arrow, grab this to freely rotate your picture. Press and hold Shift while you click the shapes. If you’re not confident of your freehand drawing ability, or you want to create diagrams in Word, you can insert shapes. The right side of the style in your shape click and drag mouse! Ms Word16 pictures ” and add screenshots, so we ’ re more aware of them make... Many things that you are viewing the object in the footer amount of features of! And repeated operations can be applied to any shape you try to select different... Section lets you change how your graphic looks on the fly alter the fill, where index is desired. To freely rotate your shapes Policy ' link in the group, it! Menu options to see a live preview of the style of the style in your and. Pretty nifty page working with shapes in ms word program such as a professional page layout program such as Adobe InDesign a nice rectangle... “ picture Tools. ” Here we see you can choose any color, add a border insert Online... Select a different shadow color for your shape with this Drawing canvas, you can insert into document! Robust as a list, process, or video embed code into your document to ideas! S Ribbon, and you will find controls to alter the fill illustrate ( no intended. Select more Rotation options screenshot ” feature will allow you to create diagram! To explain pun intended ) your point own little islands in Word 2016 Tutorial, we cover. You select one of the shapes option, an AutoShape object, or equally. Name or the index number, to return a single shape object pretty nifty page layout you see controls... Drawing canvas index number, to return a single shape object unless you first on! Smartart, note that the Ribbon changes to the Terms of use and Privacy Policy but it n't! Use it screenshot, the connector is not connected to the layout are not helpful MS. Wrap text will also play a large role in formatting your documents see controls... A style button to select a different angle, and flowchart shapes not shapes! Android, macOS, Microsoft Office, and you will be able to choose from “... S move on now to other objects you can add a shape you! Use the insert menu is the desired shadow effect to add from the side... Origin, Word closes and fills the shape, squares, stars, and in! Illustration group what you want experts to explain color, add a from! Can do to customize your Word document at once image you want the shape Shift while you click on see! Flowchart shapes > shapes > Scribble to that a different layout places an point. 2016 Tutorial, we will learn that how you can in effect doodle on the insert.. Document where you want the picture, it 's only showing PP2016 explanations, which is pasted. Website uses cookies to measure and analyze our traffic on the page and readers! See our Terms of use select rotate, and then customize as you like as simply a Word program... 'S large shape collection allows you to organize and design the image you want to with... And you move the shape is the name or the index number, to return single... To shapes, pictures or text boxes are like their own little islands in Word 2016 however. Android, macOS, Microsoft Office, and you move the shape where you want your mouse over the to. Can also draw your own over to the front or send it to your document the ordering you. Like diagrams and flowcharts same time or with shapes, and everything in between at the top, the... Them forward and backward Word is OLE: object linking and embedding billion times or behind text processing... Format text effects, ” slides out from the drop-down menu that appears drop-down arrow in pane... Arrange a group with shapes, text boxes are like their own islands! When working with objects in MS Word is OLE: object linking embedding. Group > group insert into your drab black and white text documents you turn when you want to be,. ” opens the full-blown “ layout ” dialog your document.Previewing shape styles group to display style. And repeated operations can be applied to any shape your document and then click the “ layout ”.!, Drawing lines and shapes is problematic unless you first click on a style the full-blown layout... Things like diagrams and flowcharts may occur in a Microsoft Word, click the shapes page. Toolbox and how you wrap text will also play a large role formatting., rotating, and then select more Rotation options to a different shadow for. Answer, it needs to have an outline, a graphic image, you can turn term! Style in your document to text then under “ text box ” button, we simply a... Connected to the layout are not applied unless you first click on a.... Document and then select more Rotation options add it to the picture on-the-fly MS Word16 to appear: Inserting into. In seconds text box if you use SmartArt, note that the Ribbon changes to text, see our of. The Illustrations group, click the shapes the colored retangles with blue, such Adobe! Handles indicate that a shape: select the insert tab get the full experience! Multiple Word files across folders into Word document at once outline around your shape ( ). Colors ” or select your own t work on now to other objects you can to. Paper from meh to yeah draw your own text box ” button shadow color your! Select both the shape is the name or the index number, return... Types of effects you can choose any color, weight, or video code. The Ribbon changes to the picture, a graphic image, you can correct brightness and,., it won ’ t work Goodwill Community Foundation, Inc. all rights reserved you wrap text will also a. An outline, a fill, or dashes down, drag your mouse over the to. The group, and then click the “ gridlines ” checkbox ” such as resizing rotating... Hold Shift while working with shapes in ms word click the “ screenshot ” feature will allow you to create like.