How to Remove Horizontal Lines in Microsoft Word: A Comprehensive Guide
Horizontal lines in Microsoft Word documents can sometimes appear unexpectedly, often inserted unintentionally while formatting or typing. These lines, while sometimes used intentionally for visual separation, can become frustrating when you want to remove them but are unsure how. This comprehensive guide will walk you through various methods to effectively get rid of unwanted horizontal lines in Microsoft Word, ensuring your document looks exactly as you intend. We’ll cover everything from automatic borders to drawing objects, providing step-by-step instructions and helpful tips.
## Understanding the Types of Horizontal Lines
Before we dive into the removal methods, it’s important to understand that there are several types of horizontal lines that can appear in Word. Each type requires a specific approach for removal:
* **Automatic Borders:** These lines are often inserted automatically when you type three or more hyphens, underscores, or equal signs followed by pressing Enter. Word interprets this as a request to insert a border line.
* **Manually Inserted Borders:** These are lines added intentionally using the Borders and Shading options.
* **Drawing Objects:** Lines can also be created as drawing objects, using the Shapes tool.
* **Table Borders:** Lines can be part of a table’s border.
* **Section Breaks:** Although not technically a horizontal line, a section break can appear as a dividing line in your document.
Knowing the type of line you’re dealing with is crucial for choosing the correct removal method.
## Method 1: Removing Automatic Borders
This is the most common type of unwanted horizontal line. Word’s AutoCorrect feature often inserts these automatically.
**Steps:**
1. **Identify the Line:** Locate the unwanted horizontal line in your document.
2. **Undo (Immediate Solution):** Immediately after the line appears, press `Ctrl+Z` (Windows) or `Cmd+Z` (Mac) to undo the automatic formatting. This is the quickest solution if you catch it right away.
3. **Use the AutoCorrect Options Button:** When an automatic border is created, a small AutoCorrect Options button might appear nearby (it looks like a lightning bolt). Hover your mouse over the line. If the AutoCorrect Options button appears, click on it.
4. **Choose “Stop Automatically Creating Border Lines”:** From the AutoCorrect Options menu, select “Stop Automatically Creating Border Lines.” This will prevent Word from creating these lines in the future.
5. **Manual Removal (If AutoCorrect Options Button is Unavailable):** If the AutoCorrect Options button doesn’t appear or you want to remove a line that was created previously:
* **Position the Cursor:** Place your cursor directly above the horizontal line.
* **Go to Borders and Shading:** Navigate to the “Home” tab on the Ribbon.
* **Click the Borders Button:** In the “Paragraph” group, click the dropdown arrow next to the “Borders” button (it looks like a windowpane). A menu will appear.
* **Select “Borders and Shading”:** At the bottom of the menu, choose “Borders and Shading…” This will open the Borders and Shading dialog box.
* **Go to the “Borders” Tab:** In the Borders and Shading dialog box, make sure you are on the “Borders” tab.
* **Set the Setting to “None”:** In the “Setting” section on the left, select “None.” This will remove all borders from the selected paragraph (the one where your cursor is located).
* **Alternatively, Remove Only the Bottom Border:** If you only want to remove the bottom border, you can leave the “Setting” to its current value (usually “Box” or “Custom”) and click on the bottom line preview in the preview area on the right. This will toggle the bottom border on or off.
* **Click “OK”:** Click the “OK” button to apply the changes and close the dialog box. The horizontal line should now be gone.
## Method 2: Removing Manually Inserted Borders
If you (or someone else) intentionally added a border to a paragraph, you need to remove it using the Borders and Shading options.
**Steps:**
1. **Identify the Line:** Locate the horizontal line in your document.
2. **Position the Cursor:** Place your cursor anywhere within the paragraph that has the border you want to remove.
3. **Go to Borders and Shading:** Navigate to the “Home” tab on the Ribbon.
4. **Click the Borders Button:** In the “Paragraph” group, click the dropdown arrow next to the “Borders” button.
5. **Select “Borders and Shading”:** Choose “Borders and Shading…” from the menu.
6. **Go to the “Borders” Tab:** In the Borders and Shading dialog box, ensure you’re on the “Borders” tab.
7. **Set the Setting to “None”:** In the “Setting” section, select “None.” This will remove all borders from the selected paragraph.
8. **Alternatively, Remove Specific Borders:** If you only want to remove a specific border (like the bottom one), you can leave the “Setting” as it is and click on the corresponding line in the preview area to toggle it off.
9. **Click “OK”:** Click “OK” to apply the changes.
## Method 3: Removing Drawing Objects (Shapes)
If the horizontal line was inserted as a drawing object (a shape), you need to remove it like any other shape.
**Steps:**
1. **Identify the Line:** Locate the horizontal line in your document.
2. **Select the Line:** Click directly on the line to select it. If the line is difficult to select, try clicking slightly above or below it. Look for selection handles (small circles or squares) to appear around the line, indicating it is selected. If you have trouble selecting it, the line might be behind other objects. In that case, try moving objects around until you can access the line.
3. **Delete the Line:** Once the line is selected, press the `Delete` key on your keyboard, or right-click on the line and choose “Cut” from the context menu. The line should disappear.
**Troubleshooting Selection:**
* **Line is Too Thin:** If the line is very thin, it can be difficult to click directly on it. Try zooming in (using the zoom slider in the lower right corner of the Word window) to make the line easier to target.
* **Line is Locked or Grouped:** If you can’t select the line, it might be locked or grouped with other objects. To unlock it, right-click on the line (or the group it’s in) and look for options like “Unlock” or “Ungroup.” If these options are grayed out, the line may be part of a header or footer (see Method 6).
## Method 4: Removing Table Borders
Sometimes, a horizontal line might be part of a table border. In this case, you need to modify the table’s border settings.
**Steps:**
1. **Identify the Line:** Determine if the horizontal line is part of a table. You’ll usually see other lines forming a grid around the text.
2. **Select the Table:** Click anywhere inside the table. This should activate the “Table Design” and “Layout” tabs on the Ribbon.
3. **Go to Table Design:** Click on the “Table Design” tab.
4. **Click the Borders Button:** In the “Table Styles” group, find the “Borders” button. Click the dropdown arrow next to it.
5. **Choose “No Border”:** Select “No Border” from the menu. This will remove all borders from the entire table.
6. **Alternatively, Remove Specific Borders:** If you only want to remove specific borders, select “Borders and Shading…” from the menu. In the Borders and Shading dialog box:
* **Go to the “Borders” Tab:** Ensure you’re on the “Borders” tab.
* **Select the Setting:** Choose “None” to remove all borders, or use the preview area to click on specific borders to toggle them on or off. You can also change the border style, color, and width if you want to customize the borders instead of removing them entirely.
* **Apply to Table or Cell:** In the “Apply to” dropdown menu, make sure “Table” is selected if you want to remove the border from the entire table. If you only want to remove the border from specific cells, select those cells before opening the Borders and Shading dialog box, and then choose “Cell” in the “Apply to” dropdown.
* **Click “OK”:** Click “OK” to apply the changes.
## Method 5: Removing Section Breaks (If Mistaken for a Line)
While not a horizontal line in the traditional sense, a section break can sometimes appear as a dividing line. If you’re seeing a line that doesn’t behave like a border or a drawing object, it might be a section break.
**Steps:**
1. **Show Formatting Marks:** Go to the “Home” tab on the Ribbon.
2. **Click the “Show/Hide ¶” Button:** In the “Paragraph” group, click the “Show/Hide ¶” button (it looks like a backwards P). This will display all formatting marks in your document, including section breaks.
3. **Identify the Section Break:** Look for a line labeled “Section Break (Next Page),” “Section Break (Continuous),” or similar. The text will vary depending on the type of section break.
4. **Select the Section Break:** Click and drag to select the section break marker. You may need to click and drag slightly above or below the line of text to fully select the section break.
5. **Delete the Section Break:** Press the `Delete` key on your keyboard. This will remove the section break and merge the two sections of your document. Be aware that removing a section break can affect the formatting of your document, as the sections may have had different page layouts or headers/footers.
**Important Considerations When Removing Section Breaks:**
* **Page Numbering:** Removing a section break can affect page numbering if you had different numbering schemes in different sections.
* **Headers and Footers:** Section breaks often separate different headers and footers. Removing a section break will apply the header and footer from one section to the other.
* **Margins and Page Orientation:** If the sections had different margins or page orientations (portrait vs. landscape), removing the section break will apply the settings of one section to the other.
Before deleting a section break, consider these potential consequences and be prepared to adjust your document’s formatting as needed.
## Method 6: Checking Headers and Footers
Sometimes, horizontal lines are intentionally placed within headers or footers. If you can’t remove a line using the methods above, check the header and footer areas.
**Steps:**
1. **Open the Header or Footer:** Double-click near the top of the page (to open the header) or near the bottom of the page (to open the footer). This will activate the Header & Footer Tools Design tab on the Ribbon.
2. **Locate the Line:** Look for the horizontal line within the header or footer area.
3. **Select the Line:** Click on the line to select it. It might be a drawing object (shape) or a border applied to the header or footer paragraph.
4. **Remove the Line:**
* **If it’s a Drawing Object:** Press the `Delete` key to remove the line.
* **If it’s a Border:** Go to the “Home” tab, click the dropdown arrow next to the “Borders” button, and choose “Borders and Shading…” Set the “Setting” to “None” or remove the specific border line in the preview area, as described in Method 1 and 2.
5. **Close Header and Footer:** Click the “Close Header and Footer” button on the Header & Footer Tools Design tab, or double-click anywhere in the main body of the document.
## Method 7: Dealing with Horizontal Line Artifacts (Rare Cases)
In very rare cases, you might encounter horizontal lines that seem to be artifacts or glitches within Word. These are uncommon but can be caused by display issues, corrupted files, or outdated software.
**Troubleshooting Steps:**
1. **Update Microsoft Word:** Make sure you have the latest version of Microsoft Word installed. Software updates often include bug fixes that can resolve display issues.
2. **Update Graphics Drivers:** Outdated or corrupted graphics drivers can sometimes cause display problems. Update your graphics drivers to the latest version from your computer manufacturer’s website (e.g., Intel, NVIDIA, AMD).
3. **Try a Different View:** Switch between different document views (e.g., Print Layout, Web Layout, Draft) to see if the line disappears in a different view. Go to the “View” tab on the Ribbon and select a different view.
4. **Repair Microsoft Office:** Microsoft Office has a built-in repair tool that can fix corrupted files and settings. To repair Office:
* **Close all Office applications.**
* **Open the Control Panel:** On Windows, search for “Control Panel” in the Start menu.
* **Go to Programs and Features:** Click on “Programs” and then “Programs and Features.”
* **Find Microsoft Office:** Locate your version of Microsoft Office in the list of installed programs.
* **Right-click and choose “Change”:** Right-click on Microsoft Office and select “Change.”
* **Choose “Repair”:** In the Microsoft Office setup window, choose the “Repair” option (either “Quick Repair” or “Online Repair”). Follow the on-screen instructions to complete the repair process.
5. **Save as a Different File Format:** Try saving your document in a different file format (e.g., .docx, .doc, .rtf) and then reopening it. This can sometimes resolve file corruption issues. Go to “File” > “Save As” and choose a different file format from the “Save as type” dropdown menu.
6. **Copy and Paste to a New Document:** Create a new Word document and copy and paste the content from your original document into the new one. This can help to isolate the problem and prevent it from recurring.
7. **Restart Your Computer:** A simple restart can sometimes resolve temporary display issues.
## Preventing Horizontal Lines in the Future
While knowing how to remove horizontal lines is important, preventing them from appearing in the first place can save you time and frustration.
* **Disable Automatic Borders:** To prevent Word from automatically creating border lines, you can disable the AutoCorrect feature. Go to “File” > “Options” > “Proofing” > “AutoCorrect Options…” On the “AutoFormat As You Type” tab, uncheck the box next to “Border lines.” Click “OK” to save the changes.
* **Be Mindful of Typing Sequences:** Avoid typing three or more hyphens, underscores, or equal signs followed by Enter unless you intend to create a border line.
* **Use Styles for Consistent Formatting:** Use Word’s Styles feature to apply consistent formatting to your document. This can help prevent accidental border insertions and ensure a uniform look.
* **Double-Check Borders and Shading Settings:** Before finalizing your document, review the Borders and Shading settings for each paragraph to ensure that no unwanted borders are present.
## Conclusion
Removing horizontal lines in Microsoft Word can be a straightforward process once you understand the different types of lines and the corresponding removal methods. By following the steps outlined in this guide, you can effectively eliminate unwanted lines and maintain a clean, professional-looking document. Remember to identify the type of line you’re dealing with, use the appropriate removal technique, and take preventive measures to avoid future occurrences. With a little practice, you’ll be able to confidently control the appearance of your Word documents and create polished, error-free content.