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: Deleting Index Entries.

Deleting Index Entries

Written by Allen Wyatt (last updated October 14, 2023)
This tip applies to Word 97, 2000, 2002, and 2003

Word provides the tools for you to create complete indexes for your documents. After creating all the index entries, as described in other WordTips, you might decide later to remove an index entry. To do this, follow these general steps:

Make sure you have Word set to display text that is formatted as hidden.
Use Find and Replace (Ctrl+F) to locate the index entry you want to delete.
Select the entire field, including the field braces, and press Del. The index entry is deleted.
Repeat steps 2 and 3 for each entry you want to delete.

WordTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Word training. (Microsoft Word is the most popular word processing software in the world.) This tip (792) 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: Deleting Index Entries.

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

Indexing a Range of Pages

After you get your document ready for indexing by inserting index fields throughout it, you may want to index only a ...

Discover More

Automatically Saving Document Copies on Floppy

WordPerfect included a command that allowed users to save a copy of their current document to the A: drive. Word has no ...

Discover More

Editing PivotTables without Underlying Data

If you ever try to edit a PivotTable and get an error that tells you that the "underlying data was not included," it can ...

Discover More

Create Custom Apps with VBA! Discover how to extend the capabilities of Office 365 applications with VBA programming. Written in clear terms and understandable language, the book includes systematic tutorials and contains both intermediate and advanced content for experienced VB developers. Designed to be comprehensive, the book addresses not just one Office application, but the entire Office suite. Check out Mastering VBA for Microsoft Office 365 today!

More WordTips (menu)

Specifying an Index Page-Range Separator

When generating an index, Word normally uses a dash to indicate page ranges. You can change the character used for these ...

Discover More

Specifying an Index Entry Separator

One of the switches you can use with the index field allows you to specify how index entries should be separated from the ...

Discover More

Chapter Numbers in Indexes and TOAs

Word allows you to define prefixes for page numbers. These are often used for chapter or section numbers in a large ...

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 more than 0?

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.