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: Store Common Addresses in Building Blocks.

Store Common Addresses in AutoText Entries

Written by Allen Wyatt (last updated September 7, 2019)
This tip applies to Word 97, 2000, 2002, and 2003


If you write lots of letters, you'll appreciate this one. Store your common address—the ones to whom you write letters the most—in AutoText entries. In this way, you can input just the first (or last) name of the person you need, press F3, and have the address inserted at the top of your letterhead—sure beats typing it out all the time.

To define an address as an AutoText entry, follow these steps:

  1. Select the paragraphs containing the address.
  2. Choose AutoText from the Insert menu, and then New from the resulting submenu. Word displays the Create AutoText dialog box. (See Figure 1.)
  3. Figure 1. The Create AutoText dialog box.

  4. Enter the name you want assigned to the address. For instance, use the last name of the person or the person's title. (The trick is to use something you will easily remember later.)
  5. 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 (1894) 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: Store Common Addresses in Building Blocks.

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

Changing a Toolbar Button Image

Changing the image of a button on a Toolbar in Word.

Discover More

Evaluating Formulas

Need a bit of help in figuring out how Excel is evaluating a particular formula? It's easy to figure out if you use the ...

Discover More

Returning Blanks or Asterisks from a Lookup

Want to return more than a value when doing a lookup? Here's one way to do it by adding an IF clause to your formula.

Discover More

Do More in Less Time! An easy-to-understand guide to the more advanced features available in the Microsoft 365 version of Word. Enhance the quality of your documents and boost productivity in any field with this in-depth resource. Complete your Word-related tasks more efficiently as you unlock lesser-known tools and learn to quickly access the features you need. Check out Microsoft 365 Word For Professionals For Dummies today!

More WordTips (menu)

Restoring or Recreating AutoText Entries

When you first install Word, it includes a number of pre-defined AutoText entries. If you delete any of these entries ...

Discover More

Creating Custom AutoText Categories

Want to categorize your AutoText entries? You can easily do so using the techniques described in this tip.

Discover More

AutoText Limits

Are there limits to AutoText entries in Word? If you are having problems saving entries, it may not be due to limits ...

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 five more than 6?

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.