Use Find and Replace to change one word throughout your document
The fastest way to replace a word in a Word document is to use the Find and Replace feature. This tool searches for every instance of a word or phrase and swaps it for something else in seconds—much faster than hunting through the document by hand. You can replace one word at a time or change every occurrence at once.
The Find and Replace dialog is built into Microsoft Word and works the same way whether you use Word on Windows, Mac, or the web version. You do not need to install anything or use a different program.
Key Takeaways
- Open Find and Replace by pressing Ctrl+H on Windows or Command+H on Mac, or go to the Home tab and click Replace.
- Type the word you want to find in the "Find what" field and the replacement word in the "Replace with" field.
- Click "Replace All" to change every instance at once, or "Replace" to change one at a time and review each change.
- Use "Match case" if you need to replace only words that match the exact capitalization, such as proper nouns.
- The status bar at the bottom tells you how many replacements were made so you can verify the change worked.
Step-by-step: Replace a word using the keyboard shortcut
The keyboard shortcut is the quickest route. Press Ctrl+H on Windows or Command+H on Mac. The Find and Replace dialog will open when ready.
Type the word you want to find in the "Find what" field at the top. For example, if you want to replace "colour" with "color", type "colour" here. Then click in the "Replace with" field below it and type "color".
Before you click Replace All, pause and decide whether you want to review each change. If the word you are replacing is common (like "the" or "and"), click the "Replace" button one at a time so you can see the context and make sure you are replacing the right instance. If the word is specific and unlikely to appear by accident (like a person's name or a technical term), you can safely click "Replace All" to change everything at once.
After you finish, the dialog will tell you how many replacements were made. Close the dialog by clicking the X button or pressing Escape.
Step-by-step: Replace a word using the menu
If you prefer not to use the keyboard shortcut, you can open Find and Replace through the menu. Click the Home tab at the top of the ribbon. On the right side of the Home tab, you will see a button labeled Replace (it looks like a small document with an arrow). Click it.
The Find and Replace dialog will open. Follow the same steps as above: type the word to find, type the replacement word, and choose whether to replace one at a time or all at once.
On Mac, the menu path is slightly different. Click Edit at the top of the screen, then select Find and then Replace from the dropdown menu.
Match case to replace only exact capitalizations
By default, Find and Replace ignores capitalization. If you search for "john" it will find "John", "JOHN", and "john" all the same. This is useful most of the time, but sometimes you need to replace only words that match the exact capitalization.
To do this, check the box labeled Match case before you click Replace All. Now the search will find only words that match the capitalization you typed. If you type "John" in the Find field, it will find only "John", not "john" or "JOHN".
Match case is especially useful when you are replacing proper nouns or when you need to preserve the original capitalization of a word in different parts of your document.
Replace whole words only, not parts of words
Sometimes a word you want to replace appears inside another word. For example, if you search for "cat" you will also find and replace "cat" inside "category" or "scatter". To avoid this, use the Find whole words only option.
In the Find and Replace dialog, look for a checkbox labeled Match entire cell contents or Find whole words only (the exact label depends on your version of Word). Check this box before you search. Now Word will find only "cat" as a standalone word, not as part of another word.
This option is especially important when you are replacing short words or abbreviations that might appear inside longer words by accident.
Common mistakes to avoid
The biggest mistake is clicking "Replace All" without reviewing what you are replacing first. If you are replacing a common word, take the time to click "Replace" one at a time so you can see the sentence around each instance. This prevents you from accidentally replacing a word in a place where it should not be changed.
Another common error is forgetting to close the Find and Replace dialog after you finish. The dialog stays open until you close it, which can make it harder to see your document. Press Escape or click the X button to close it.
Do not forget to save your document after you make replacements. Use Ctrl+S on Windows or Command+S on Mac to save. If you make a mistake, you can undo the replacement by pressing Ctrl+Z or Command+Z when ready after, but it is safer to save only after you have reviewed the changes.
Undo a replacement if something went wrong
If you click "Replace All" and realize the replacement was wrong, you can undo it when ready. Press Ctrl+Z on Windows or Command+Z on Mac. This will reverse the last replacement and restore your document to the way it was before.
Undo works best if you do it right away, before you make other changes to the document. If you have already made other edits, you may need to undo multiple times to get back to the state before the replacement. If you have already saved and closed the document, undo will not work—this is why it is important to review replacements before saving.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I replace text with special characters or line breaks?
Yes, but you need to use special codes. In the "Replace with" field, you can type special characters directly (like @ or #). For a line break, you need to enable "Regular expressions" in the Find and Replace dialog, then use ^p in the Replace field to represent a paragraph break. This is an advanced feature, so check your Word version's help if you need it.
What if I want to replace only the first instance of a word?
Click the "Replace" button instead of "Replace All". This will replace only the first instance it finds. You can then click "Replace" again to replace the next instance, or click "Find Next" to skip to the next one without replacing it.
Does Find and Replace work in Word Online?
Yes. In Word Online, press Ctrl+H to open Find and Replace, or click the Edit menu and select Find and Replace. The feature works the same way as in the desktop version, though some advanced options may not be available.
Can I search for a word and replace it with nothing to delete it?
Yes. Leave the "Replace with" field empty and click "Replace All". Word will delete every instance of the word you searched for. Be careful with this—make sure you really want to remove the word before you click Replace All.
What if the word I want to replace appears in different forms, like "run", "runs", and "running"?
You will need to do separate replacements for each form, or use Regular expressions if your version of Word supports it. For most users, it is easier to do three separate Find and Replace operations—one for "run", one for "runs", and one for "running"—to make sure each replacement is correct.