Displaying Path Names in the Menu Bar

by Allen Wyatt
(last updated August 7, 2019)

There is a way to display a full path name on Word's menu bar:

Right-click anywhere on a toolbar. This displays a Context menu for the toolbars.
Choose Customize from the Context menu. Word displays the Customize dialog box.
Click on the Commands tab.
In the Categories list, choose Web.
Drag the Address command (the first one in the command list) to the right of the Help menu on the menu bar. This action positions the Address drop-down list at the end of the menu bar.
Click on Close.

Normally, the Address drop-down list is used if you are working with the Internet-aware side of Word. However, when you are working with plain old documents, the control shows the current path and document name of the document that is currently active.

WordTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Word training. (Microsoft Word is the most popular word processing software in the world.) This tip (1249) 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...

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What is 5 - 4?

2015-08-12 17:12:47

M P Tyler

I have Word 2010. Your tip looks like nothing I have. I can set up a custom ribbon item to show the address, but only a small portion shows at a time. (There seems to be a width limitation in the word software.) Is there a way in 2010 to show the full path across the screen?

2015-01-13 21:47:19

Claude

I have word 14 on a Mac.

I am trying to have the path of any document I open on the tool bar.

Is that possible? how?

If not what else can i do

thx

Claude

2014-10-27 08:09:04

Billie

I sudcrcribe but recieve no email from you,in any bomail box?

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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.