Embossing Text

Written by Allen Wyatt (last updated November 25, 2023)
This tip applies to Word 97, 2000, 2002, and 2003

One of the ways in which you can format text in your document is to apply what Word calls "embossing." When you emboss text, it appears to be lifted off the page, with shadowing at the edges. This feature was introduced in Word 97, so it is not available in Word 6 or Word 95. To emboss text, follow these steps:

Choose the text you want to emboss.
Choose Font from the Format menu. Word displays the Font dialog box. (See Figure 1.)

Figure 1. The Font dialog box.

Make sure the Emboss check box is selected.
Click on OK.

You can also play with different font colors and background colors to make the embossed text appear different.

WordTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Word training. (Microsoft Word is the most popular word processing software in the world.) This tip (637) 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

Inserting a Break with a Macro

Inserting a break in your document is easy. You may think that inserting one using a macro is more complex, but it isn't. ...

Discover More

Inserting the Date Your Document Was Last Printed

Word keeps track of each time you print your document, and you can automatically insert the last printing date anywhere ...

Discover More

Forcing a Page Break Before a Paragraph

There are times that you just want to begin a paragraph (perhaps a heading) at the top of a new page. Word allows you to ...

Discover More

Create Custom Apps with VBA! Discover how to extend the capabilities of Office 2013 (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, and Access) with VBA programming, using it for writing macros, automating Office applications, and creating custom applications. Check out Mastering VBA for Office 2013 today!

More WordTips (menu)

Letters Turn into Squares

Imagine that you are typing away, and all of a sudden your beautiful prose turns into a series of small rectangles that ...

Discover More

Quickly Decreasing Point Size

A shortcut for decreasing the point size of a font.

Discover More

Complex Compound Formatting

Sometimes it can seem that the formatting needs of your document can easily outstrip the capabilities of Word. This is ...

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 six minus 4?

There are currently no comments for this tip. (Be the first to leave your comment—just use the simple form above!)

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.