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: Searching for Non-Black Text.

Searching for Non-Black Text

Written by Allen Wyatt (last updated May 25, 2019)
This tip applies to Word 97, 2000, 2002, and 2003

When searching for text in a document, it is easy to search for formats such as "bold" or "italic." You can also search for "not bold" and "not italic." You can search for text of a specific color, but Word does not allow you to search for text other than a specific color. For instance, you cannot search for text that is "not black."

If you need to search for text that is not black, then the best way to do so is with a macro. Consider the following macro, which prompts you for your search text, and then looks for the first non-black instance of that text.

Sub FindNotBlack()
    With Selection.Find
        .ClearFormatting
        .Text = InputBox(prompt:="Enter the search text.", _
          Title:="Find Nonblack Text")
        Do While .Execute
            With Selection.Font
                If (.Color <> wdColorAutomatic) And _
                  (.Color <> wdColorBlack) Then
                    MsgBox "Found"
                    Exit Sub
                End If
            End With
        Loop
    End With
End Sub

Note that the macro checks to see if the color of the matched text is different from black (wdColorBlack) and from the automatic color (wdColorAutomatic). This is because the automatic color is black on most systems.

Note:

If you would like to know how to use the macros described on this page (or on any other page on the WordTips sites), I've prepared a special page that includes helpful information. Click here to open that special page in a new browser tab.

WordTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Word training. (Microsoft Word is the most popular word processing software in the world.) This tip (1387) 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: Searching for Non-Black Text.

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

AutoText Unavailable in Headers and Footers

When you are creating headers and footers for your document, you might want to use some of your AutoText entries. What if ...

Discover More

Center-column Footnotes

Ever want to change the formatting of your footnotes? This tip explains what you can and can't do in Word.

Discover More

Monitoring the Number of Formats Defined

The number of formats used in a workbook can become a problem if you run up against the limit Microsoft hard-coded into ...

Discover More

Discover the Power of Microsoft Office This beginner-friendly guide reveals the expert tips and strategies you need to skyrocket your productivity and use Office 365 like a pro. Mastering software like Word, Excel, and PowerPoint is essential to be more efficient and advance your career. Simple lessons guide you through every step, providing the knowledge you need to get started. Check out Microsoft Office 365 For Beginners today!

More WordTips (menu)

Searching for Optional Hyphens

If you have a document that contains optional hyphens (special characters that mark where a word can be split between ...

Discover More

Searching for Footnote and Endnote Marks

Do you want to quickly search for any footnote or endnote marks in your document? Word makes it easy using the standard ...

Discover More

Searching for ASCII and ANSI Characters

Need to get down to the "character level" when searching for information in a document. Word allows you to search for any ...

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 5 - 5?

2021-03-17 02:17:13

Thanks for this! It is very close to what I was seeking.

Is there a way to tweak it to find ANY text that is not black or "automatic"?

Thank you!

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.