Shortcut for Full-Screen Mode

Written by Allen Wyatt (last updated August 30, 2022)
This tip applies to Word 97, 2000, 2002, and 2003

Word includes a full-screen mode that minimizes the extraneous information (tools, menus, etc.) displayed on the screen. The normal way of switching to full-screen mode is to choose View | Full Screen. You exit the mode by either clicking the Close Full Screen button or by pressing Esc.

If you'd like to use a keyboard shortcut to enter full-screen mode, one method is to press Alt+V, then U. (These are the keystrokes to activate the proper menu choices.) To create your own shortcut, follow these steps:

Choose Customize from the Tools menu. Word displays the Customize dialog box. (See Figure 1.)

Figure 1. The Customize dialog box.

Click the Keyboard button. Word displays the Customize Keyboard dialog box. (See Figure 2.)

Figure 2. The Customize Keyboard dialog box.

In the list of Categories, choose View.
In the list of Commands, choose ToggleFull.
Place the insertion point in the Press New Shortcut Key box.
Press the shortcut key you want to use, such as Alt+S.
Click Assign.
Close the dialog boxes.

One interesting thing is that when you assign they shortcut in this manner, the same key is used to switch to and from full-screen mode. This is possible because the command you assign to the shortcut is actually a toggle.

WordTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Word training. (Microsoft Word is the most popular word processing software in the world.) This tip (102) applies to Microsoft Word 97, 2000, 2002, and 2003.

Author Bio

Allen Wyatt

With more than 50 non-fiction books and numerous magazine articles to his credit, Allen Wyatt is an internationally recognized author. He is president of Sharon Parq Associates, a computer and publishing services company. Learn more about Allen...

MORE FROM ALLEN

Picking a Contiguous Range of Table Cells

Creating a table in Word is a relatively simple task. When you want to format or edit information in the table, often the ...

Discover More

Counting the Number of Blank Cells

If you need to count the number of blank cells in a range, the function to use is COUNTBLANK. This tip discusses the ...

Discover More

Selecting Printing of Color Pictures

Do you want to control whether color pictures in your document are printed or not? It's not quite as easy as it may ...

Discover More

Discover the Power of Microsoft Office This beginner-friendly guide reveals the expert tips and strategies you need to skyrocket your productivity and use Office 365 like a pro. Mastering software like Word, Excel, and PowerPoint is essential to be more efficient and advance your career. Simple lessons guide you through every step, providing the knowledge you need to get started. Check out Microsoft Office 365 For Beginners today!

More WordTips (menu)

Shortcut for Show/Hide

Hate to take your hands off the keyboard? Here's a handy keyboard shortcut you can use to display (or not display) the ...

Discover More

Finding Default Shortcut Keys

There are scores of shortcut keys defined in Word. If you want to discover what all those shortcut keys are, here are a ...

Discover More

Canceling a Menu

Want to back out of whatever you are doing in a menu? As with many tasks, Word provides several different ways you can ...

Discover More

FREE SERVICE: Get tips like this every week in WordTips, a free productivity newsletter. Enter your address and click "Subscribe."

View most recent newsletter.

Comments

If you would like to add an image to your comment (not an avatar, but an image to help in making the point of your comment), include the characters [{fig}] (all 7 characters, in the sequence shown) in your comment text. You’ll be prompted to upload your image when you submit the comment. Maximum image size is 6Mpixels. Images larger than 600px wide or 1000px tall will be reduced. Up to three images may be included in a comment. All images are subject to review. Commenting privileges may be curtailed if inappropriate images are posted.

Notify me about new comments ONLY FOR THIS TIP

Notify me about new comments ANYWHERE ON THIS SITE

Hide my email address

What is 7 + 9?

2016-11-20 17:31:25

Judy Newlin

I am trying to make my page larger..
Windows 2013. Have to say "what were you thinking" with some of the changes to this? I thought you could go back to Windows 10 if you have a problem...but do NOT know how to do that. Judy Newlin

This Site

Got a version of Word that uses the menu interface (Word 97, Word 2000, Word 2002, or Word 2003)? This site is for you! If you use a later version of Word, visit our WordTips site focusing on the ribbon interface.