Italophile, thank you for clearing up the misunderstanding. My n-th try:
Code:
Sub Test_Nth()
Application.ScreenUpdating = False
'If the selection includes tables, error 4605 will be returned.
'Thus an error handler is needed:
On Error Resume Next
For Each oPara In ActiveDocument.range.Paragraphs
oPara.range.Select
selection.End = selection.End - 1
selection.Shading.BackgroundPatternColor = wdColorAutomatic
Next oPara
Application.ScreenUpdating = True
End Sub