WD: Troubleshooting Guide for Unwanted Page Breaks (98076)


The information in this article applies to:

  • Microsoft Word for Windows 6.0
  • Microsoft Word for Windows 6.0a
  • Microsoft Word for Windows 6.0c
  • Microsoft Word for Windows 95
  • Microsoft Word for Windows 95 7.0a
  • Microsoft Word for the Macintosh 6.0
  • Microsoft Word for the Macintosh 6.0.1
  • Microsoft Word for Windows NT 6.0
  • Microsoft Word 97 for Windows
  • Microsoft Word 98 Macintosh Edition
This article was previously published under Q98076

SUMMARY

This article describes how to troubleshoot page breaks that occur in a Word document at unexpected or unwanted locations.

NOTE: It is easier to view page breaks in normal view than page layout view. To switch to normal view, on the View menu, click Normal.

MORE INFORMATION

Check Spacing Before or After the Paragraph

  1. Select either the paragraph immediately before or after the unwanted page break.
  2. On the Format menu, click Paragraph.
  3. Click the Indents And Spacing tab, and then check to see whether the Spacing Before or Spacing After is set to an unusually high value in the Format Paragraph dialog box.

NOTE: It may be necessary to select the entire document and check the paragraph formatting. If options are blank or unavailable, enter the appropriate values, or click the appropriate options.

Check the Pagination Options of the Preceding Paragraph

  1. Select the first paragraph on the page following the unwanted page break.
  2. On the Format menu, click Paragraph.
  3. Use the appropriate step for your version of Word:

    For Microsoft Word 97 for Windows and Microsoft Word 98 Macintosh Edition, click the Line and Page Breaks tab.

    For Microsoft Word 6.x for Windows or Macintosh, or for Microsoft Word for Windows 95, version 7.0, click the Text Flow tab.
  4. Check to see whether one of the following three pagination options is selected:
    • Page Break Before: Inserts a page break before a paragraph.
    • Keep With Next: Prevents a page break between the current and following paragraphs.
    • Keep Lines Together: Prevents a page break within a paragraph.

Check the From Edge Setting in the Header/Footer Dialog Box

  1. Use the appropriate procedure for your version of Word to locate the From Edge setting.

    For Word 6.x, 7.x, 97 for Windows:
    On the File menu, click Page Setup, and then click to select the Margins tab.

    For Word 98 Macintosh Edition:

    On the Format menu, click Document and then click the Margins tab.

    For Word version 6.x for the Macintosh:

    On the File menu, click Document Layout and then click the Margins tab.
  2. Look at the From Edge setting for the header or footer to see if it is too large.
This setting determines the distance from the edge of the page where Word starts printing the text of a header or footer. The default setting is 0.5 inch. A larger setting decreases the available print area for your document.

Check to See If the Text Following the Page Break Is in a Table

Word includes an option that does not allow a page break to be inserted in a table cell. As a result, if the entire cell does not fit on the page, Word pushes the entire cell to the next page.

To change this option:

  1. Place the insertion point in the table.
  2. On the Table menu, click Cell Height and Width.
  3. Click the Row tab.
  4. Click to select the Allow Row to Break Across Pages check box.
This sets the page break option for the entire table.

Search for Manual (or "Hard") Page Breaks

You may have inserted a manual page break by using one of the following methods:

  • Pressing CTRL+ENTER (Windows) or SHIFT+ENTER (Macintosh).

    -or-

  • On the Insert menu, clicking Break, and then selecting Page Break, and then clicking OK.
You can use the Replace command to remove manual page breaks by searching for manual page breaks.

NOTE: You should not click the Replace All button when you remove manual page breaks unless your document contains no section breaks.

Check for Unexpected Pages Breaks Following "Normal" Style Text

If a series of Heading styles is used in a document (an outline, for example) followed by text formatted with the Normal style, an unexpected page break may occur following the Normal text. This problem occurs only in normal view and does not occur in outline view. Use one of the following methods to remove individual occurrences of an unwanted page break.

Method 1: Apply the Keep with Next Option to Normal Text:

  1. Select the Normal text.
  2. On the Format menu, click Paragraph.
  3. Click the Line and Page Breaks tab (Word 97 and Word 98) or the Text Flow tab (Word 6.x and Word 7.x), and then click to select Keep with Next.
  4. Click OK.
Method 2: Clear the Keep with Next Option from the Heading:

  1. Select the Heading text that precedes the Normal text.
  2. On the Format menu, click Paragraph.
  3. Click the Line and Page Breaks tab (Word 97 and Word 98) or the Text Flow tab (Word 6.x and Word 7.x), and then click to clear Keep with Next.
  4. Click OK.
Method 3: Permanently Change the Occurrence of Unwanted Page Breaks:

  1. On the Format menu, click Style.
  2. In the List list, click All Styles.
  3. In the Styles list, click Heading 1.
  4. Click Modify.
  5. Click Format, and then click Paragraph.
  6. Click the Line and Page Breaks tab (Word 97 for Windows and Word 98 Macintosh Edition) or the Text Flow tab (Word 6.x and Word 7.x).
  7. Click to clear Keep with Next, and then click OK.

    NOTE: Repeat steps 3 through 7 for each Heading style before continuing.
  8. To make the change permanent for the current document and all new documents based on the active template, click to select Add To Template. Otherwise, changes only affect the current document.
  9. Click OK and then click Close.

REFERENCES

"Microsoft Word User's Guide," version 6.0, pages 64-65, 130, 245-247, 303

"Microsoft Word for Windows User's Guide," version 2.0, pages 258, 264-266, 316, 437-438, 577-578
Modification Type:MinorLast Reviewed:8/16/2005
Keywords:kbdisplay kbinfo KB98076
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