Engraving Text

Written by Allen Wyatt (last updated September 27, 2025)

One of the ways in which you can format text in your document is to apply what Word calls "engraving." When you engrave text, it appears to be sunken into the page, with shadowing at the edges. Engraved text is the opposite of embossed text. To engrave text, follow these steps:

  1. Choose the text you want to engrave.
  2. Choose Font from the Format menu. Word displays the Font dialog box. (See Figure 1.)
  3. Figure 1. The Font dialog box.

  4. Make sure the Engrave check box is selected.
  5. Click on OK.

You can also play with different font colors and background colors to make the engraved text appear different.

WordTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Word training. (Microsoft Word is the most popular word processing software in the world.) This tip (1432) 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. ...

MORE FROM ALLEN

Inserting Footnotes

Footnotes appear at the bottom (or foot) of each page. It is an easy task to insert a footnote at any point you desire, ...

Discover More

Specifying the Y Value in X of Y Page Numbering

Page numbers in Excel headers and footers have always been a source of frustration for users. This tip recounts one ...

Discover More

Displaying Numbers as Spaced Pairs

Custom formats can be very powerful in Excel, but not every formatting scenario can be addressed through the use of a ...

Discover More

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!

More WordTips (menu)

Understanding Monospace Fonts

Monospace fonts allow you to easily achieve a specific "look" with your text or to line up information in a certain way. ...

Discover More

Complex Compound Formatting

Sometimes it can seem that the formatting needs of your document can easily outstrip the capabilities of Word. This is ...

Discover More

Smushing Text Together

Word gives you control over how your text appears on the page. This includes adjusting how close letters are to each ...

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 three more than 4?

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.