Jan 27, 2017 - Unfortunately, there is no intrinsic way to delete section breaks and maintain. Word applies to the last section the column formatting that you. Although Section Breaks give the impression being at the beginning of the section, they are actually at the end and contain all the section-specific formatting for what is in the section before them. When you delete a section break the section above gets merged into, and takes the properties of, the section below.
You get a document. Someone has added section breaks, but they are all over the place — odd breaks, even breaks, continuous breaks, etc. You want to change a section break’s type from say ‘odd page’ to ‘next page’, but no matter what you do in Word the darned thing won’t change. There has to be an easier way than inserting a new section of the type you want and copying across all the content from the section you no longer want. And it’s super easy!
Word 2003. Click inside the section you want to change — i.e. Below the marker for the section break you want to change. Go to File Page Setup on the menu. Click the Layout tab.
In the Section start drop-down list, select the type of section you want to change it to (‘New page’ is the same as ‘Next page’ under Insert Break). Word 2007/2010.
Click inside the section you want to change — i.e. BELOW the marker for the section break you want to change. Go to the Page Layout tab. Click the Launch icon at the bottom right of the Page Setup group to open the Page Setup dialog box. Select the Layout tab. Select the type of section break from the Section Start list, then click OK. The section changes immediately.
![How Do I Delete A Section Break In Word For Mac How Do I Delete A Section Break In Word For Mac](/uploads/1/2/5/3/125381347/503179927.png)
Updated 3 July 2009 to reflect Brad’s comments below; if it still doesn’t work try the suggestions from Steve (22 July 2011) and Cassandra (17 August 2014). I had the same problem in word 2007. Like the previous post suggested, click one character AFTER the section break you want to change, so you know you are in the correct section. Then, on the page layout ribbon, click the page setup down/right arrow (in the bottom right corner of the page layout ribbon). This opens the page setup window. Click the Layout tab.
In this tab, there is a section heading and a section start option. It might say “New Page” or something. You can click that drop-down list and change it to a different type of section break.
Brad July 2, 2009 at 9:13 pm. Brad, you are an absolute star mate. I have been trying every concievable option, checking the microsoft website and generally pulling my hair out till i saw this. Like all Microsoft things it is incredibly easy once you know how, it’s Just incredibly well hidden and poorly documented also! Just wish they would implement the dead easy page deleting, re-arranging and inserting they use in powerpoint in wordwould make life so much easier!
Anyway, Cheers again. Nik Manchester, England May 13, 2010 at 6:52 pm. Hi Rhonda, thanks for answering. I checked and it was not checked.
![How Do I Delete A Section Break In Word For Mac How Do I Delete A Section Break In Word For Mac](http://libroediting.files.wordpress.com/2013/07/3-section-break-menu.png)
What I discovered was that I was inputing continuous section breaks, and it was acting like section breaks to start the next section on an odd numbered page. I have a document with 114 sections, and it did that on all but one of them, which happened to be just a few lines at the top of the page with no footnotes in it.
That one it did right – just continued on the page. But the other 113 it popped me to the next odd numbered page. So almost certainly it has something to do with the footnotes. My goal is to have a header with chapter number and name that runs within each section – some only one page and some up to 30. To do that I had to add section breaks and that is where the problems started. There are an average of about 12 footnotes per page. Any other ideas?
Jeff Jeff April 29, 2011 at 11:16 am. You are a Saint! I was ready to throw my laptop out the window, or, better yet, kill someone @ Microsoft because breaks have NEVER worked in a way that is even remotely intuitive. The fact that the problem could be solved within Word 2010 by going through FileOptionsAdvanced, on to the very bottom of the Advanced window to find the last line (i.e., ‘Layout options’) and then ferreting through the laundry list of bandaids and fixes to find and check the box next to “Lay out footnotes the way Word 6.X does” should be an embarrassment to the developers. It indicates that things are getting worse vs. Better with subsequent downgrades oops, I meant upgrades:) Definitely deserves.&%$^%#.).!!!
I have never found any useful information through the Microsoft support website it’s always through fellow tortured ones, sharing our pain and euphoria, that I have found the solutions / answers I am seeking! Cassandra August 17, 2014 at 3:48 am.