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How do I set a default paragraph style in Word-365

Anonymous
2019-02-22T01:19:08+00:00

I want to set the second style ("No Spacing") as my default in Word-365?

I don't want to diddle around with templates, etc.  I don't want to have to select it every time I open a new document.  I want to open a blank document and have it come up with that second style in the ribbon ready to go.  Right-clicking it does not provide that option.

Basically, I want Word to function exactly like this text box I am typing in right now.

What happens if I select "Remove from gallery" on the first ("Normal") style?  Does it disappear forever?  Can it be retrieved again later?  Would that make the second style become the default?  Is there a way to move the second style to the front of the row?

As an alternative, how do I set a carriage-return (Enter key) to move a single line only, not start a new paragraph, as the default?  Then if I want a new paragraph, I can hit CR twice.  Sometimes I want to move to a new line, but not start a new paragraph.

Thank you.

Microsoft 365 and Office | Word | For home | Windows

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  1. Doug Robbins - MVP - Office Apps and Services 322.9K Reputation points MVP Volunteer Moderator
    2019-02-22T04:00:40+00:00

    Right click on the Normal style in the Styles gallery and then click on Modify and change the paragraph formatting of the style so that it meets your requirements.  

    Before exiting the Modify Style dialog, select the radio button for New documents based on this template.

    8 people found this answer helpful.
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  2. Stefan Blom 339K Reputation points MVP Volunteer Moderator
    2019-02-23T01:43:00+00:00

    If you don't want any paragraph spacing added as you press Enter to create a new paragraph, the easiest solution is to modify the Normal style so that it doesn't add any extra spacing. One way to do that is by changing the settings in the Paragraph dialog box which you can display by right-clicking a text paragraph and selecting Paragraph from the context menu. Set the Line Spacing to "Single" and set Spacing Before and Spacing After to zero, and then click Set As Default. See screen shot below.

    4 people found this answer helpful.
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  3. Suzanne S Barnhill 277.1K Reputation points MVP Volunteer Moderator
    2019-02-22T13:27:15+00:00

    3 people found this answer helpful.
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  4. Doug Robbins - MVP - Office Apps and Services 322.9K Reputation points MVP Volunteer Moderator
    2019-02-22T15:36:32+00:00

    I did NOT say anything about changing the style for the following paragraph!  You need to change the paragraph formatting in the Normal style so that it has 0 space before and after it and possibly you may also want to change the Line spacing.

    2 people found this answer helpful.
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  5. Anonymous
    2019-02-22T04:26:04+00:00

    I had already tried that.  I changed "Style for following paragraph" to "no spacing."  The formatting looks just like the "No spacing" style.  However, after the first paragraph, the CR still jumps 1.5-2 lines (a regular paragraph jump).  It's only after the subsequent paragraphs that the CR moves a single line.  I can't find a setting to move only a single line after the first CR.  Does that make sense?

    The second style ("no spacing") works exactly like I want, but I can't figure out how to make it default.

    2 people found this answer helpful.
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