Computer shortcut keys everyone should know: Word, Excel, shortcuts

It is not a stretch when declaring that computers have become an essential aspect of everyday life! If you’re a frequent users, then you should be aware about key shortcuts on the keyboard. In essence, a computer shortcut can be described as a combination of keys that trigger a specific command in a program or operating system. This means that you can boost your efficiency by triggering commands using a couple of keystrokes, however, it’s accessible only via a menu, mouse, or some other feature.

Computer keyboard shortcut keys work quickly and make your work easier.

Here is a list of frequently employed shortcut keys that help you to use a faster and easier method of making use of computer applications:

S.NO	Keyboard shortcut	Action
1	Ctrl+O	Open
2	Ctrl+S	Save
3	Ctrl+W	Close
4	Ctrl+X	Cut
5	Ctrl+C	Copy
6	Ctrl+V	Paste
7	Ctrl+A	Select all
8	Ctrl+B	Bold
9	Ctrl+I	Italic
10	Ctrl+U	Underline
11	Ctrl+[	Decrease font size 1 point
12	Ctrl+]	Increase font size 1 point
13	Ctrl+E	Center text
14	Ctrl+L	Left align text
15	Ctrl+R	Right align text
16	Esc	Cancel
17	Ctrl+Z	Undo
18	Ctrl+Y	Re-do
19	Alt+W, Q, then tab in Zoom dialog box to the value you want	Zoom

	Function Keys :-

1	F1	Get Help or visit Office.com.
2	F2	Move text or graphics.
3	F4	Repeat the last action.
4	F5	Choose the Go To command (Home tab).
5	F6	Go to the next pane or frame.
6	F7	Choose the Spelling command (Review tab).
7	F8	Extend a selection.
8	F9	Update the selected fields.
9	F10	Show KeyTips.
10	F11	Go to the next field.
11	F12	Choose the Save As command.

	Shift+Function Keys :-

1	Shift+F1	Start context-sensitive Help or reveal formatting.
2	Shift+F2	Copy text.
3	Shift+F3	Change the case of letters.
4	Shift+F4	Repeat a Find or Go To action.
5	Shift+F5	Move to the last change.
6	Shift+F6	Go to the previous pane or frame (after pressing F6).
7	Shift+F7	Choose the Thesaurus command (Review tab, Proofing group).
8	Shift+F8	Reduce the size of a selection.
9	Shift+F9	Switch between a field code and its result.
10	Shift+F10	Display a shortcut menu.
11	Shift+F11	Go to the previous field.
12	Shift+F12	Choose the Save command.

	Ctrl+Function Keys :-

1	Ctrl+F1	Expand or collapse the ribbon.
2	Ctrl+F2	Choose the Print Preview command.
3	Ctrl+F3	Cut to the Spike.
4	Ctrl+F4	Close the window.
5	Ctrl+F6	Go to the next window.
6	Ctrl+F9	Insert an empty field.
7	Ctrl+F10	Maximize the document window.
8	Ctrl+F11	Lock a field.
9	Ctrl+F12	Choose the Open command.

	Ctrl+Shift+Function Keys :-

1	Ctrl+Shift+F3	Insert the contents of the Spike.
2	Ctrl+Shift+F5	Edit a bookmark.
3	Ctrl+Shift+F6	Go to the previous window.
4	Ctrl+Shift+F7	Update linked information in a Word source document.
5	Ctrl+Shift+F8, and then press an arrow key	Extend a selection or block.
6	Ctrl+Shift+F9	Unlink a field.
7	Ctrl+Shift+F11	Unlock a field.
8	Ctrl+Shift+F12	Choose the Print command.

	Alt+Function Keys :-

1	Alt+F1	Go to the next field.
2	Alt+F3	Create a new Building Block.
3	Alt+F4	Exit Word.
4	Alt+F5	Restore the program window size.
5	Alt+F6	Move from an open dialog box back to the document, for dialog boxes that support this behavior.
6	Alt+F7	Find the next misspelling or grammatical error.
7	Alt+F8	Run a macro.
8	Alt+F9	Switch between all field codes and their results.
9	Alt+F10	Display the Selection task pane.
10	Alt+F11	Display Microsoft Visual Basic code.

	Alt+Shift+Function Keys :-

1	Alt+Shift+F1	Go to the previous field.
2	Alt+Shift+F2	Choose the Save command.
3	Alt+Shift+F9	Run GOTOBUTTON or MACROBUTTON from the field that displays the field results.
4	Alt+Shift+F10	Display a menu or message for an available action.
5	Alt+Shift+F12	Choose Table of Contents button in the Table of Contents container when the container is active.

	Ctrl+Alt+Function Keys :-

1	Ctrl+Alt+F1	Display Microsoft System Information.
2	Ctrl+Alt+F2	Choose the Open command.

	Navigate the Ribbon with only the Keyboard :-

1	Alt+F	To use Backstage view, open the File page.
2	Alt+G	To use themes, colors, and effects, such as page borders, open the Design tab.
3	Alt+H	To use common formatting commands, paragraph styles, or to use the Find tool. open Home tab.
4	Alt+M	To manage Mail Merge tasks, or to work with envelopes and labels, open Mailings tab .
5	Alt+N	To insert tables, pictures and shapes, headers, or text boxes, open Insert tab.
6	Alt+P	To work with page margins, page orientation, indentation, and spacing, open Layout tab.
7	Alt+Q, then enter the search term	To type a search term for Help content, open “Tell me” box on ribbon.
8	Alt+R	To use Spell Check, set proofing languages, or to track and review changes to your document, open the Review tab.
9	Alt+S	To add a table of contents, footnotes, or a table of citations, open the References tab.
10	Alt+W	To choose a document view or mode, such as Read Mode or Outline view, open the View tab. You can also set Zoom magnification and manage multiple windows of documents.

	Work with documents in different views :-

1	Alt+W, F	Switch to Read Mode view
2	Alt+Ctrl+P	Switch to Print Layout view.
3	Alt+Ctrl+O	Switch to Outline view.
4	Alt+Ctrl+N	Switch to Draft view.

	Work with headings in Outline view :-

1	Alt+Shift+Left Arrow	Promote a paragraph.
2	Alt+Shift+Right Arrow	Demote a paragraph.
3	Ctrl+Shift+N	Demote to body text.
4	Alt+Shift+Up Arrow	Move selected paragraphs up.
5	Alt+Shift+Down Arrow	Move selected paragraphs down.
6	Alt+Shift+Plus Sign	Expand text under a heading.
7	Alt+Shift+Minus Sign	Collapse text under a heading.
8	Alt+Shift+A	Expand or collapse all text or headings.
9	The slash (/) key on the numeric keypad	Hide or display character formatting.
10	Alt+Shift+L	Show the first line of text or all text.
11	Alt+Shift+1	Show all headings with the Heading 1 style.
12	Alt+Shift+n	Show all headings up to Heading n.
13	Ctrl+Tab	Insert a tab character.

	Navigate in Read Mode view :-

1	Home	Go to beginning of document.
2	End	Go to end of document.
3	n (n is the page number you want to go to), Enter	Go to page n.
4	Esc	Exit Read mode.

	Edit and move text and graphics :-

1	F8	Turn extend mode on.
2	F8, and then press Left Arrow or Right Arrow	Select the nearest character.
3	F8 (press once to select a word, twice to select a sentence, and so on)	Increase the size of a selection.
4	Shift+F8	Reduce the size of a selection.
5	Esc	Turn extend mode off.
6	Shift+Right Arrow	Extend a selection one character to the right.
7	Shift+Left Arrow	Extend a selection one character to the left.
8	Ctrl+Shift+Right Arrow	Extend a selection to the end of a word.
9	Ctrl+Shift+Left Arrow	Extend a selection to the beginning of a word.
10	Shift+End	Extend a selection to the end of a line.
11	Shift+Home	Extend a selection to the beginning of a line.
12	Shift+Down Arrow	Extend a selection one line down.
13	Shift+Up Arrow	Extend a selection one line up.
14	Ctrl+Shift+Down Arrow	Extend a selection to the end of a paragraph.
15	Ctrl+Shift+Up Arrow	Extend a selection to the beginning of a paragraph.
16	Shift+Page Down	Extend a selection one screen down.
17	Shift+Page Up	Extend a selection one screen up.
18	Ctrl+Shift+Home	Extend a selection to the beginning of a document.
19	Ctrl+Shift+End	Extend a selection to the end of a document.
20	Alt+Ctrl+Shift+Page Down	Extend a selection to the end of a window.
21	Ctrl+A	Extend a selection to include the entire document.
22	Ctrl+Shift+F8, and then use the arrow keys; press Esc to cancel selection mode	Select a vertical block of text.
23	F8+arrow keys; press Esc to cancel selection mode	Extend a selection to a specific location in a document.

	Delete Text and Graphics :-

1	Backspace	Delete one character to the left.
2	Ctrl+Backspace	Delete one word to the left.
3	Delete	Delete one character to the right.
4	Ctrl+Delete	Delete one word to the right.
5	Ctrl+X	Cut selected text to the Office Clipboard.
6	Ctrl+Z	Undo the last action.
7	Ctrl+F3	Cut to the Spike. (Spike is a feature that allows you to collect groups of text from different locations and paste them in another location).

	Copy and move text and graphics :-

1	Press Alt+H to move to the Home tab, and then press F,O.	Open the Office Clipboard
2	Ctrl+C	Copy selected text or graphics to the Office Clipboard.
3	Ctrl+X	Cut selected text or graphics to the Office Clipboard.
4	Ctrl+V	Paste the most recent addition or pasted item from the Office Clipboard.
5	F2 (then move the cursor and press Enter)	Move text or graphics once.
6	Shift+F2 (then move the cursor and press Enter)	Copy text or graphics once.
7	Alt+F3	When text or an object is selected, open the Create New Building Block dialog box.
8	Shift+F10	When the building block — for example, a SmartArt graphic — is selected, display the shortcut menu that is associated with it.
9	Ctrl+F3	Cut to the Spike.
10	Ctrl+Shift+F3	Paste the Spike contents.
11	Alt+Shift+R	Copy the header or footer used in the previous section of the document.

	Format Characters and Paragraphs :-

1	Ctrl+D	Open the Font dialog box to change the formatting of characters.
2	Shift+F3	Change the case of letters.
3	Ctrl+Shift+A	Format all letters as capitals.
4	Ctrl+B	Apply bold formatting.
5	Ctrl+U	Apply an underline.
6	Ctrl+Shift+W	Underline words but not spaces.
7	Ctrl+Shift+D	Double-underline text.
8	Ctrl+Shift+H	Apply hidden text formatting.
9	Ctrl+I	Apply italic formatting.
10	Ctrl+Shift+K	Format letters as small capitals.
11	Ctrl+Equal Sign	Apply subscript formatting (automatic spacing).
12	Ctrl+Shift+Plus Sign	Apply superscript formatting (automatic spacing).
13	Ctrl+Spacebar	Remove manual character formatting.
14	Ctrl+Shift+Q	Change the selection to the Symbol font.

	Change or re-size the font :-

1	Ctrl+Shift+F	Open the Font dialog box to change the font.
2	Ctrl+Shift+>	Increase the font size.
3	Ctrl+Shift+<	Decrease the font size.
4	Ctrl+]	Increase the font size by 1 point.
5	Ctrl+[	Decrease the font size by 1 point.

	Copy Formatting :-

1	Ctrl+Shift+C	Copy formatting from text.
2	Ctrl+Shift+V	Apply copied formatting to text.

	Change Paragraph Alignment :-

1	Ctrl+E	Switch a paragraph between centered and left-aligned.
2	Ctrl+J	Switch a paragraph between justified and left-aligned.
3	Ctrl+R	Switch a paragraph between right-aligned and left-aligned.
4	Ctrl+L	Left align a paragraph.
5	Ctrl+M	Indent a paragraph from the left.
6	Ctrl+Shift+M	Remove a paragraph indent from the left.
7	Ctrl+T	Create a hanging indent.
8	Ctrl+Shift+T	Reduce a hanging indent.
9	Ctrl+Q	Remove paragraph formatting.

	Copy and review text formats:-

1	Ctrl+Shift+* (asterisk on numeric keypad does not work)	Display nonprinting characters.
2	Shift+F1 (then click the text with the formatting you want to review)	Review text formatting.
3	Ctrl+Shift+C	Copy formats.
4	Ctrl+Shift+V	Paste formats.

	Set Line Spacing:-

1	Ctrl+1	Single-space lines.
2	Ctrl+2	Double-space lines.
3	Ctrl+5	Set 1.5-line spacing.
4	Ctrl+0 (zero)	Add or remove one line space preceding a paragraph.

	Mail Merge and Fields:-

1	Alt+Shift+K	Preview a mail merge.
2	Alt+Shift+N	Merge a document.
3	Alt+Shift+M	Print the merged document.
4	Alt+Shift+E	Edit a mail-merge data document.
5	Alt+Shift+F	Insert a merge field.