How to See All Paragraph Styles Used in a Word Doc

Instead of wading through every Microsoft Word paragraph style just to find the one you need, try viewing only the styles used in the current document. You'll need a version of Word installed on a Windows or macOS device, as this option is not yet available for Android, iOS, and Office Online.

Method 1
Method 1 of 3:

Word for Mac 2016

  1. Image titled See All Paragraph Styles Used in a Word Doc Step 1
    1
    Open your document in Word.
  2. Image titled See All Paragraph Styles Used in a Word Doc Step 2
    2
    Click the Home tab. This is the first tab in the toolbar at the top of the screen.
    Advertisement
  3. Image titled See All Paragraph Styles Used in a Word Doc Step 3
    3
    Click the Styles Pane icon on the right side of the toolbar. The Styles pane will appear on the ride side of the screen, displaying a list of every style in Word.[1]
  4. Image titled See All Paragraph Styles Used in a Word Doc Step 4
    4
    Place a checkmark next to “Show Styles Guides.” Now the Styles toolbox lists only the styles used in the current document. To view a style's details (such as font size, color, etc.), hover your mouse over its name.
    • Each style name is preceded by a colored box containing a number.
    • Colored boxes now also appear along the left side of your document.
  5. Image titled See All Paragraph Styles Used in a Word Doc Step 5
    5
    Compare the colored boxes in the Styles toolbox to those in your document.
    • For example, if the style “Normal” shows a blue box with a 1, each paragraph using that style will also show a blue box with a 1.
    • To assign a different style to a paragraph, highlight that paragraph and then click a style in the Styles toolbox.
    6. Advertisement
Method 2
Method 2 of 3:

Word for Mac 2011

  1. Image titled See All Paragraph Styles Used in a Word Doc Step 6
    1
    Open your document in Word.
  2. Image titled See All Paragraph Styles Used in a Word Doc Step 7
    2
    Click the View menu at the top of the screen.[2]
  3. Image titled See All Paragraph Styles Used in a Word Doc Step 8
    3
    Click Print Layout.
  4. Image titled See All Paragraph Styles Used in a Word Doc Step 9
    4
    Click Show or hide the toolbox on the toolbar. The button may appear as an icon of a square containing three horizontal lines with a smaller red square at its top. Once clicked, the “Styles” toolbox will appear.[3]
  5. Image titled See All Paragraph Styles Used in a Word Doc Step 10
    5
    Click the at the top left corner of the toolbox. The Styles toolbox will now show a list of all available styles in Word.
  6. Image titled See All Paragraph Styles Used in a Word Doc Step 11
    6
    Place a checkmark next to “Show Styles Guides.” Now the Styles toolbox lists only the styles used in the current document. To view a style's details (such as font size, color, etc.), hover your mouse over its name.
    • Each style name is preceded by a colored box containing a number.
    • Colored boxes now also appear along the left side of your document.
  7. Image titled See All Paragraph Styles Used in a Word Doc Step 12
    7
    Compare the colored boxes in the Styles toolbox to those in your document.
    • For example, if the style “Normal” shows a blue box with a 1, each paragraph using that style will also show a blue box with a 1.
    • To assign a different style to a paragraph, highlight that paragraph and then click a style in the Styles toolbox.
    8. Advertisement
Method 3
Method 3 of 3:

Word for Windows

  1. Image titled See All Paragraph Styles Used in a Word Doc Step 13
    1
    Open your document in Word.
  2. Image titled See All Paragraph Styles Used in a Word Doc Step 14
    2
    Click the Home tab.
  3. Image titled See All Paragraph Styles Used in a Word Doc Step 15
    3
    Press Alt+⇧ Shift+Ctrl+S. The Styles pane will open on the right side of the screen, displaying the list of all styles in Word.[4]
    • You can also open the Styles pane by clicking the tiny arrow at the bottom right corner of the “Styles” toolbar at the top of the screen.
  4. Image titled See All Paragraph Styles Used in a Word Doc Step 16
    4
    Click the Options link at the bottom of the Styles pane.
  5. Image titled See All Paragraph Styles Used in a Word Doc Step 17
    5
    Click the dropdown menu beneath “Select Styles to Show.”
  6. Image titled See All Paragraph Styles Used in a Word Doc Step 18
    6
    Select In Current Document from the dropdown menu.
  7. Image titled See All Paragraph Styles Used in a Word Doc Step 19
    7
    Place a check next to “Paragraph Level Formatting.” The other check boxes should remain blank.
  8. Image titled See All Paragraph Styles Used in a Word Doc Step 20
    8
    Click OK. Now the Styles pane will only show the paragraph styles used in the current document.
  9. Image titled See All Paragraph Styles Used in a Word Doc Step 21
    9
    Click anywhere in your document to see which style is used. The style used in the paragraph you clicked will now appear highlighted in the Styles pane.
    • Hover your mouse over the name of the style in the Styles pane to see its details, such as font size, face, and color.
    • To modify a Style, hover the mouse over its name and click the small arrow.
    • To change the style of part of your document, highlight the part you want to change, then click a style in the Styles pane.
    10. Advertisement

You Might Also Like

Remove a Blank Page in Word
How to
Remove a Blank Page in Word
Check a Word Count in Microsoft Word
How to
Check a Word Count in Microsoft Word
Create an Index in Word
How to
Create an Index in Word
Insert Page Numbers in WordEasily Add Page Numbers to a Word Document on Any Platform
Remove the 'Read Only' Status on MS Word Documents
How to
Remove the 'Read Only' Status on MS Word Documents
Convert Excel to Word3 Easy Ways to Convert Microsoft Excel Data to Word
Insert a Check Box in Word
How to
Insert a Check Box in Word
Convert a JPEG Image Into an Editable Word Document3 Free Ways to Convert JPEG Into an Editable Word Document
Make Two Columns in Word2 Easy Ways to Make Two Columns in Microsoft Word
Insert a Hyperlink in Microsoft Word3 Simple Ways to Insert a Hyperlink in Microsoft Word
Make a Booklet in Word6 Ways to Format and Print a Booklet in Word
Insert a Line in Word4 Simple Ways to Insert a Line in Microsoft Word
Add Images to a Microsoft Word DocumentHow to Insert a Picture into a Word Document: 3 Easy Ways
Add Backgrounds in WordHow to Add Backgrounds in Microsoft Word: Watermarks, Images, & Colors
Advertisement

References

  1. ↑ http://notebooks.com/2015/04/04/microsoft-office-mac-2015-preview-overview
  2. ↑ https://support.office.com/en-US/article/See-where-styles-are-applied-in-a-document-8896A7FF-4BA7-4D08-9516-B12E8F62F55B
  3. ↑ https://support.office.com/en-US/article/See-where-styles-are-applied-in-a-document-8896A7FF-4BA7-4D08-9516-B12E8F62F55B
  4. ↑ http://wordfaqs.mvps.org/DisplayStyles.htm

About This Article

Nicole Levine, MFA
Written by:
Nicole Levine, MFA
wikiHow Technology Writer
This article was co-authored by wikiHow staff writer, Nicole Levine, MFA. Nicole Levine is a Technology Writer and Editor for wikiHow. She has more than 20 years of experience creating technical documentation and leading support teams at major web hosting and software companies. Nicole also holds an MFA in Creative Writing from Portland State University and teaches composition, fiction-writing, and zine-making at various institutions. This article has been viewed 16,950 times.
How helpful is this?
Co-authors: 3
Updated: September 6, 2019
Views: 16,950
Categories: Microsoft Word
Advertisement