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: Deleting Cells.

Deleting Cells

Written by Allen Wyatt (last updated February 14, 2022)
This tip applies to Word 97, 2000, 2002, and 2003

Word contains a very powerful table editor that allows you to create very complex tables. If desired, you can delete individual cells in your table, even though such an action would make the table asymmetrical. To delete a cell, follow these steps:

Position the insertion point in the cell you want to delete.
Choose Delete from the Table menu, then choose Cells. (In Word 97 you simply choose Delete Cells from the Table menu.) Word displays the Delete Cells dialog box. (See Figure 1.)

Figure 1. The Delete Cells dialog box.

Select which way you want the cells to be adjusted.
Click on OK.

WordTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Word training. (Microsoft Word is the most popular word processing software in the world.) This tip (1766) 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: Deleting Cells.

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

Centering a Table

Left-justified tables are great for many document designs, but you may want instead to center a table between the margins ...

Discover More

Changing a Field Parameter

Fields are a powerful way to add dynamic content to your documents. Some fields rely on the use of parameters to control ...

Discover More

Controlling Formula Reference Jumping

When you select a cell, you typically do so to see what the cell contains to to make changes to the cell. How Excel ...

Discover More

Comprehensive VBA Guide Visual Basic for Applications (VBA) is the language used for writing macros in all Office programs. This complete guide shows both professionals and novices how to master VBA in order to customize the entire Office suite for their needs. Check out Mastering VBA for Office 2010 today!

More WordTips (menu)

Splitting a Table

Table getting too long? Need to move part of a table to somewhere else in your document? You can easily split an existing ...

Discover More

Splitting Table Cells

When formatting tables, you can both merge and split cells. Here's a couple of ways you can easily perform the latter ...

Discover More

Spacing Table Rows Vertically

Want to get just the right amount of spacing above and below text in a table cell? A very easy way to do this is to ...

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 0 + 7?

2019-03-12 10:42:12

June Davis

How do you add cells so they stay on one page? (see Figure 1 below)

Figure 1. Cell issues

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.