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Delete Text

George Thomas 25 Reputation points
2026-02-17T17:52:47.5233333+00:00

Cannot delete text in the latest version of ms word for Mac.

Microsoft 365 and Office | Word | For home | MacOS
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  1. Arlene D 30,705 Reputation points Independent Advisor
    2026-02-17T19:20:49.3533333+00:00

    Thanks for clarifying. The key setting is in Word for Mac under Edit > Preferences > Edit, then check "Delete selected text when you type." Once enabled, selecting text and pressing Delete or typing over it works. This is often overlooked and not clearly documented in current manuals. Hope it helps!

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  1. George Thomas 25 Reputation points
    2026-02-17T19:19:06.4833333+00:00

    The issues was in preferences. You need to select "Delete selected text when you type" in the Edit menu item. Once you do this you can select text and then use the Delete key or just type over the selected text. So simple but there are not longer any user manuals so we fly by trial and error. And forget about MicroSoft Help. Way too complicated to negotiate their maze of options.

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  1. Arlene D 30,705 Reputation points Independent Advisor
    2026-02-17T19:13:07.2766667+00:00

    Hi, George!

    Are you able to select it at all? Check if the document is protected under Tools > Protect Document, resolve any tracked changes in Review, and see if the text is inside a content control or header/footer. Make sure Word is updated and restart it

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