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: Jumping Back in a Long Document.

Jumping Back in a Long Document

Written by Allen Wyatt (last updated April 24, 2021)
This tip applies to Word 97, 2000, 2002, and 2003


If you are editing a long document and you need to temporarily refer to another place in the document, you can use this tip to make yourself more productive. There are two ways you can jump back and forth in your document.

First, you can use the scroll bars to view the other parts of the document. The insertion point is still at your old editing position, even though it is off-screen. When you are through viewing the part of the document you needed to refer to, press one of the arrow keys or any printable character (including the Space Bar). You will be taken back to the exact place you were editing. Of course, if you pressed a printable character you will need to delete it.

The other method is to use Shift+F5. This key combination is used to jump to the last three places in the document where you made edits. (Actually, it is four locations if you count the one where you first pressed Shift+F5.) You can press it once and you will return to where you were most recently editing.

WordTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Word training. (Microsoft Word is the most popular word processing software in the world.) This tip (1123) 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: Jumping Back in a Long Document.

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. ...

MORE FROM ALLEN

Merging Many Workbooks

If you need to combine the contents of a bunch of workbooks into a single workbook, the process can get tedious. Here's a ...

Discover More

DOS From Macros

Need to run a DOS command from within one of your macros? The answer is the Shell command, described in this tip.

Discover More

Starting Date for a Week Number

If you need to determine the starting date for a particular week in a year, your first task is to identify which week ...

Discover More

The First and Last Word on Word! Bestselling For Dummies author Dan Gookin puts his usual fun and friendly candor back to work to show you how to navigate Word 2019. Spend more time working and less time trying to figure it all out! Check out Word 2019 For Dummies today!

More WordTips (menu)

Jumping to the End of a Word

Using shortcut keys to navigate through your document is really handy. One navigation shortcut that Word doesn't provide ...

Discover More

Speeding Up Cursor Movement

If you use the arrow keys to move the insertion point through the document, you may have noticed that it can be slow ...

Discover More

What Line Am I On?

At the bottom of your document, on the status bar, you can see the line on which your insertion point is located. It is ...

Discover More
Subscribe

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.

What is two minus 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.

Videos
Subscribe

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

(Your e-mail address is not shared with anyone, ever.)

View the most recent newsletter.