How Do I Show or Hide Microsoft Word Field Codes?

Microsoft Word can embed special items in Word documents called field codes. Fields in Microsoft Word are used as placeholders for data that might change in a document, and for creating form letters and labels in mail-merge documents. These kinds of fields are also called field codes, and they are different from the type of fields that are used to enter information, such as on a form.

Accidentally turning on field codes can be a nuisance while creating Word templates. When this happens, all of the Tags in your Word template will appear like this:

For Word 2007 and later, just press the key combination Alt+F9.

For earlier versions of Word, follow these steps:

  • Open the document where the field codes are displayed.
  • Press Alt+F9 to turn off field codes currently on the page. To turn off a field code for a specific field, click on the field and press Shift+F9 instead.
  • Click the Office button and select "Word Options" to turn off field codes by default.
  • Select the "Advanced" tab in the "Word Options" window.
  • Scroll to the "Show document content" section. Deselect "Show field codes instead of their values" and click "OK."

0 Comments

Add your comment

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.