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: Editing Word's Built-in Commands.

Editing Word's Built-in Commands

Written by Allen Wyatt (last updated January 31, 2026)
This tip applies to Word 97, 2000, 2002, and 2003

Word allows you not only to edit macros, but also to edit built-in commands. You can replace or augment these commands with your own macros. You can perform the editing by following these steps:

Press Alt+F8. Word displays the Macros dialog box. (See Figure 1.)

Figure 1. The Macros dialog box.

Using the Macros In drop-down list, select Word Commands.
Using the command list, locate and select the command you want to edit. Once selected, the name should appear not only in the list of commands, but also in the Macro Name box at the top of the dialog box.
Using the Macros In drop-down list, select where you want your edited command to appear. For instance, you could select All Active Templates and Documents, or you could select a specific template or document name where your new command should be stored. The command name should still appear in the Macro Name box at the top of the dialog box.
Click on Create. (The Create button will not be clickable until you perform step 4.) Word starts the VBA Editor and shows the program instructions that make up the built-in command.
Make your changes to the command.
Close the Editor window by clicking on the Close icon in the upper-right corner of the window.
Save your changes, if prompted.

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 (1836) 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: Editing Word's Built-in Commands.

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...

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