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: Deriving an Absolute Value.

Deriving an Absolute Value

Written by Allen Wyatt (last updated June 25, 2018)
This tip applies to Word 97, 2000, 2002, and 2003


VBA provides a function to return the absolute value of an expression. For those who might not remember from math class, an absolute value is the positive equivalent of any expression. Thus, if a formula would normally result in a negative value, such as -27, the absolute value of that formula would result in the positive equivalent, or 27.

The syntax for the absolute value function is as follows:

x = Abs(y)

where x is the result and y is a value or an expression that evaluates to a value.

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 (1898) 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: Deriving an Absolute Value.

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

Selecting an Entire Section

Documents can be subdivided into sections, with each of them formatted differently. If you want to select all the text in ...

Discover More

Conditionally Formatting for a Pattern

Conditional formatting is a great tool you can use to customzie your worksheets. When you want to test whether a value in ...

Discover More

Selecting a Suggestion with the Keyboard

Excel tries to anticipate what you want to type into a cell, particularly when it comes to entering formulas. Here are ...

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)

Determining the Current Page Number

While your macro is processing the text in your document, you may need a way to determine the current page number where ...

Discover More

Saving a Document in a Macro

If you develop a macro to process your document, you may want the macro to save the document to disk. This is easily done ...

Discover More

Clearing the Undo Stack in a Macro

When writing a macro, you may need a way to clear the undo stack. This can be done with a single command, as described in ...

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 7 + 1?

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.