Please Note: This article is written for users of the following Microsoft Word versions: 97, 2000, 2002, and 2003. If you are using a later version (Word 2007 or later), this tip may not work for you. For a version of this tip written specifically for later versions of Word, click here: Wrapping Text around a Graphic in a Text Box.
Written by Allen Wyatt (last updated February 25, 2022)
This tip applies to Word 97, 2000, 2002, and 2003
Doris is trying to put together a newsletter and is using text boxes so she can flow the continuation of an article from the front page to a later page. She wants to use a graphic image with one of the articles, but can't get Word to flow the text around the image within the text box.
The reason that this won't work is because wrapping of text, in Word, is implemented through the interaction of two layers of content: the text layer and the drawing layer. When an object is on the drawing layer, information on the text layer can be wrapped around it. Any text within a text box cannot be wrapped around another object in the text box because both the text and the object are on the same layer—the drawing layer.
This means that if you still want to wrap text around the graphic, you'll need to take a different approach to laying out your newsletter. For instance, you might use multiple text boxes, butted up next to each other, to give the appearance of the text flowing around the graphic.
If you want to stick with a single text box, you could insert a two- or three-column table inside the text box and put the graphic in one of the columns. You can then add text to the other column and it appears to be beside the graphic. You would, of course, need to experiment with the borders and shading of the table to make sure they don't detract from the layout you are trying to achieve.
WordTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Word training. (Microsoft Word is the most popular word processing software in the world.) This tip (430) applies to Microsoft Word 97, 2000, 2002, and 2003. You can find a version of this tip for the ribbon interface of Word (Word 2007 and later) here: Wrapping Text around a Graphic in a Text Box.
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2018-12-04 00:14:22
Anita Graham
And this is just one more reason why working in word is hard. Anything that is not a straight-down-the-line document has something to trip you up.
(And I've worked with word for since the mid 90s.)
2018-04-29 00:25:29
Nicole
Thank you for the column idea!
2017-04-26 04:13:44
Harry McMillan
WHY NOT?? I urgently need it to do an advertisement for an assignment with a picture involved.
2016-12-28 00:24:01
Another idea
Another, similar idea can be to bring the picture into Word - onto a regular page (not into the text box), then set it to be 'in front of text', then drag it over the text-box. It will float, and can arrange the text to be around it. Ty for the forum
2016-12-28 00:11:46
Thank you
Thank you, at least I know it just doesn't work, and I wasn't doing anything wrong.
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Please Note:
This article is written for users of the following Microsoft Word versions: 97, 2000, 2002, and 2003. If you are using a later version (Word 2007 or later), this tip may not work for you. For a version of this tip written specifically for later versions of Word, click here:
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