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: Adding Drop-Shadows to Paragraphs.

Adding Drop-Shadows to Paragraphs

Written by Allen Wyatt (last updated November 19, 2021)
This tip applies to Word 97, 2000, 2002, and 2003

You already know that Word allows you to quickly and easily add borders to your paragraphs. You can take this one step further by adding drop shadows to your text. A drop shadow is a type of border that is wider on two sides than it is on the other two. The result, especially when printed, is that the bordered paragraph looks like it is raised above the rest of the document. To add a drop shadow to a paragraph, follow these steps:

Position the insertion point in the paragraph to which you want the drop shadow added.
Select the Borders and Shading command from the Format menu. Word displays the Borders tab of the Borders and Shading dialog box. (See Figure 1.)

Figure 1. The Borders tab of the Borders and Shading dialog box.

Select the Shadow option from the Preset area at the left side of the dialog box.
Select a line weight from the Width drop-down list.
Click on OK.

WordTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Word training. (Microsoft Word is the most popular word processing software in the world.) This tip (1160) 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: Adding Drop-Shadows to Paragraphs.

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...

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