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: Entering a Page Break from the Keyboard.
Written by Allen Wyatt (last updated August 20, 2020)
This tip applies to Word 97, 2000, 2002, and 2003
Page breaks are Word's method of signaling that the following text should begin at the top of a new page. You probably know that you can insert a page break by choosing Break from the Page menu. However, this involves removing your hands from the keyboard and using the mouse, which can disrupt the pace at which you are typing.
The quickest way to enter a page break using the keyboard is to simply press Ctrl+Enter. Word dutifully adds the page break and you can continue typing away.
If you later want to remove the page break, place the insertion point directly before the break and press the Delete key. Page breaks can be deleted just like regular characters.
WordTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Word training. (Microsoft Word is the most popular word processing software in the world.) This tip (1459) 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: Entering a Page Break from the Keyboard.
The First and Last Word on Word! Bestselling For Dummies author Dan Gookin puts his usual fun and friendly candor back to work to show you how to navigate Word 2013. Spend more time working and less time trying to figure it all out! Check out Word 2013 For Dummies today!
Search through the Symbol dialog box, and you may see some special characters whose names seem odd. These are the ...
Discover MoreThere are many rules in English grammar (and many exceptions to those rules.) One common rule of grammar is to capitalize ...
Discover MoreOne of the more common symbols that people need to use in their writing is the degree symbol, typically used after a ...
Discover MoreFREE SERVICE: Get tips like this every week in WordTips, a free productivity newsletter. Enter your address and click "Subscribe."
2019-06-20 07:57:31
Rose Walker
In Word for Mac, the shortcut is control+shift+enter.
2016-11-29 02:03:17
Dueep Jyot Singh
Mr. Kobari, yes, I understand. What a big bore that blank page is. Especially when control enter is supposed to be a time-saving keyboard shortcut.
Now I need to write a lot of text, with lots of page breaks. I got really fed up with your problem and found an expert solution.
Just type something on the keyboard. Take your mouse to the beginning of the line. Now press control enter. You are going to go straight to a new page, without any empty page in between, in print mode, and then you can delete that text, or continue typing as you wish!
Hope this tip helps.
2015-08-07 22:49:37
Bari Kobari
It is very annoying that Ctrl+Enter doesn't just enter a page break. It adds an Enter and a page break and if you are at the last line of the page it jumps to the top of the next page then enters page break there, leaving a blank page behind.
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 © 2025 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