Weekly Computer Tip # 263
14 March 2009


Searching for whole words only
(Word 2000-2007)

First of all apologies for this late tip. (I've been binge-working recently but even this self-confessed workaholic needed a break.)

This week's tip is inspired by something that drove me mad the other day: I had to find the word "late" in one of my Word documents but before it found that it showed me: later, annihilated, latest, translate, related, lately (I'm sure you get my drift). So if you ever want to search for whole words only ...

Here's how:

  1. Press CTRL+F (for find).
  2. In the Find what box, type the text you wish to find.
  3. If necessary, click the More button to display additional Search Options.
  4. Select the "Find whole words only" check box.
  5. Click on the Find Next button to highlight the first occurrence of the search text. Continue clicking on this button to highlight subsequent occurrences of the text.

Once you've found the word you're looking for, simply press the Escape key to close the box. (Or are you still picking up your mouse and clicking on Cancel, despite the last tip? See tip_262.php if you missed it.)

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