How to Print a Word Document: Preview and Print Microsoft Word Files

To print a Microsoft Word document, open the File menu, choose the Print command, set the print area in the dialog box, and click "OK." This is the standard route after you create or edit a Word document and are ready to put it on paper.

How do you print a Word document step by step?

Printing a Word document takes only a few clicks once the file is open and your printer is connected. Follow these steps in order:

1. Open the document you want to print in Microsoft Word.
2. Open the File menu and choose the Preview command to check how the pages will look on paper.
3. Return to the File menu and choose the Print command.
4. In the Print dialog box, specify the area to be printed — the whole document, individual pages, or a selected block.
5. Click the "OK" button with the left mouse button to send the document to the printer (Figure 1).

Why preview a document before printing?

Previewing a Word document before printing lets you see exactly how it will appear on paper while it is still on your monitor screen, so you can catch layout problems before wasting paper or ink. To preview, give the Preview command from the File command submenu. The preview shows page breaks, margins, headers, and footers as they will be printed, which makes it easy to spot a stray blank page or a table that runs off the edge.

What is the keyboard shortcut to print in Word?

The keyboard shortcut to open the print dialog box in Microsoft Word is Ctrl+P. This shortcut works in most other Windows applications as well, including browsers and PDF viewers, so it is worth memorising. Pressing Ctrl+P brings up the same Print dialog box you reach through the File menu, where you can confirm the print area and settings before printing.

How do you choose which pages to print?

You control which pages print from the print area options inside the Print dialog box. Microsoft Word gives you three common choices:

• The whole document — prints every page from start to finish.
• Individual pages — prints only the page numbers or ranges you specify.
• A selected block — prints only the text you highlighted in the document before opening the dialog box.

Selecting just a block or a page range is the simplest way to print a single section without sending the entire file to the printer.

How do you select the right printer?

If you have several printers on your computer, select the desired printer in the Print command dialog box before you start printing. The dialog box lists every printer installed on the system, and you can specify its properties — such as paper size, orientation, quality, or colour versus black and white — by opening the printer's settings from the same dialog box. Confirming the correct printer first avoids sending a document to a device in another room or to a virtual PDF printer by mistake.

How do you reopen a file to print it again?

To print a document a second time, reopen the saved file in Word and run the Print command again. If you need to reopen a file to print it again, see our guide on opening a Word document to continue working. You may also find it helpful to learn how to open a .doc or .docx file and explore more PC tips for working with documents.