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: Understanding Strikethrough Formatting.
Written by Allen Wyatt (last updated April 2, 2020)
This tip applies to Word 97, 2000, 2002, and 2003
One of the character formats you can use within Word is referred to as Strikethrough. This simply means that Word shows a horizontal line through the middle of the character to which the attribute has been applied. Strikethrough can be applied either by clicking on the Strikethrough tool on the Formatting toolbar or by choosing the Strikethrough check box in any Font dialog box.
A typical use for characters being struck through is in relation to the Track Changes feature of Word. With Track Changes turned on (and displayed on the screen), characters that have been deleted are shown as struck through.
Actually Word has two types of strikethrough formatting. You can specify that something be struck through once or you can choose a double strikethrough. This latter character format, which uses two horizontal lines instead of one, must be applied from the Font dialog box. Simply make sure the Double Strikethrough check box is selected.
WordTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Word training. (Microsoft Word is the most popular word processing software in the world.) This tip (1431) 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: Understanding Strikethrough Formatting.
Learning Made Easy! Quickly teach yourself how to format, publish, and share your content using Word 2021 or Microsoft 365. With Step by Step, you set the pace, building and practicing the skills you need, just when you need them! Check out Microsoft Word Step by Step today!
When you upgrade from one version of Word to another, you may be surprised to find that your documents, all of a sudden, ...
Discover MoreNeed to get rid of the formatting applied to a bunch of text? One of the easiest ways to do this is to use Notepad in ...
Discover MoreUsers of WordPerfect know what parallel columns are. There is no such capability in Word, but there are ways you can ...
Discover MoreFREE SERVICE: Get tips like this every week in WordTips, a free productivity newsletter. Enter your address and click "Subscribe."
2016-04-07 03:07:42
Meer Muhammad
How the Macros are recorded in Ms-Word?
2015-01-12 09:40:27
awyatt
Fred: Based on the on-screen choices you describe, it sounds like you have a ribbon-based version of Word. This particular tip is for the menu-based version of the software.
Read the final paragraph or the lead-in boxed information. It tells you what version this is for and directs you to a tip that is for the later versions (like yours) that use the ribbon interface.
-Allen
2015-01-10 16:27:06
Bill
You need to open the "Font" dialog box by clicking the Dialog Box Launcher arrow (the small square containing a diagonal arrow) in the Font section of the Home Tab of the Ribbon. "Double Strikethrough" is in the "Effects" section of the Font dialog box.
2015-01-10 09:52:27
Fred
Where is this? On the top of my screen I only see these choices: File, Home, Insert, Page Layout, References, Mailings, Review, View, & Add-in. I do not see anything called “Formatting” or “Font dialog”. We need instructions for rank dummies like me.
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.
Visit the WordTips channel on YouTube
FREE SERVICE: Get tips like this every week in WordTips, a free productivity newsletter. Enter your address and click "Subscribe."
Copyright © 2026 Sharon Parq Associates, Inc.
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:
Comments