I am in a MS Word 2010 document, and using Styles to format text. I am copying text within the same document, to other places in the document. The text that I copy from has Normal style applied, but when I paste it to another location, the text automatically changes to Heading 1 style.


Here are the steps for what I’m doing:

1. Select a sentence that has Normal style applied.
2. Do Ctrl+C to copy the sentence.
3. Click in a space that also has Normal formatting.
4. Do Ctrl+V to paste the text there.
5. The text that is pasted in changes from Normal to Heading 1 (larger font and bold).

It’s almost as if the Heading 1 style is designated as a default somewhere, although I can’t find anyplace where that might be. Any ideas how to make it stop doing this?

Does the paragraph actually change to Heading 1 style or is it just the formatting of text that changes? As you probably already know, you can use the Apply Styles pane (Ctrl+Shift+S) to learn the style name at the insertion point.

The next thing to check is the default formatting of the Normal style. You can do that by selecting any text and pressing Ctrl+SpaceBar (which runs the ResetChar command and clears font formatting not included in the current paragraph style).

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Stefan Blom
Microsoft Word MVP

Microsoft 365 apps for business
Windows 11 Professional

Thanks for the reply, Stefan. The Style itself changes, not just the text - I can see it change in the Style pane.

I can make it go back to Normal Style by clicking the Clear All style, or the Normal style. I just tried the Ctrl+SpaceBar you suggested, and that brings it back to Normal style also (Calibri 11, not bold).

Is the problem document-specific? In that case, can you share the problem document (remove any sensitive information)?

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Stefan Blom
Microsoft Word MVP

Microsoft 365 apps for business
Windows 11 Professional

It happens in all the documents where I'm using those styles (about 7-8 different files). A sample file is attached.

Attached Files

Sample File.docx (82.4 KB, 14 views)

Following your instructions in the sample document does not show the issue on my Word 2013 machine.
However, if I include the paragraph mark in the copied selection then I do see the issue. This is not expected behaviour but it is easy to resolve if you simply don't include the paragraph mark in what you are copying. Another simple workaround if you want to move the entire paragraph including the paragraph mark is to use the Shift-Alt-UpArrow method of moving the current paragraph.

Now to resolve the actual change of style when you paste (or drag and drop) a whole paragraph immediately after those headings. We may need to experiment with this document for a while. I can't see anything in particular that might be causing the issue so perhaps someone else will jump in before I can work it out. I note that it appears to be related to the preceding style since pasting into a paragraph not preceded by those headings doesn't cause the issue.

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Andrew Lockton
Chrysalis Design, Melbourne Australia

It appears to have something to do with the paragraph numbering on those headings. I see the same behaviour if I paste immediately after a 'Heading 1 title' style. I don't see the same behaviour if I change those heading paragraphs to not have an automatic number.

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Andrew Lockton
Chrysalis Design, Melbourne Australia

I can reproduce this in your example document. How was the document created in the first place? Using the Normal template? Or is it based on another document?

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Stefan Blom
Microsoft Word MVP

Microsoft 365 apps for business
Windows 11 Professional

OK, I have consulted with a couple of fellow MVPs and our conclusion is that your document is damaged.

The first step is to recreate the template from which the affected documents have been created. If that template is the blank document template Normal.dotm, then you should exit Word and rename the template. Then restart Word and let it create a new template.

In the new template, recreate your styles. Apply numbering to the built-in headings as discussed in Shauna Kelly's article at http://shaunakelly.com/word/numberin...g20072010.html.

Create a new document based on your new template. Copy the content in the problem document and paste it as plain, unformatted text (for example using the "Text Only" option in the Paste Options button). Manually reformat text by applying the appropriate styles.

__________________
Stefan Blom
Microsoft Word MVP

Microsoft 365 apps for business
Windows 11 Professional