Snap an object to the Grid or to a Shape

Word 365 2016 2013 2010 2007
By default, Word makes objects snap (jump) to an underlying grid laid across the document. If you drag an object, such as a shape, you'll notice that it moves in little jerks rather than smoothly. This is because of the grid - but because the grid is normally invisible, it's not obvious.

To configure the grid, or to turn off snapping, follow these steps:

   1.   Select View -> Toolbars -> Drawing to show the Drawing toolbar:

Drawing toolbar in Word 2003

   2.   In the Drawing toolbar, choose Draw -> Grid...:

Grid in Word 2003

   3.   In the Drawing Grid dialog box:

Drawing Grid in Word 2003
  • Select the Snap objects to grid check box if you want to turn on the display of the grid.
  • Select the Snap objects to other objects check box if you want to make an object you're dragging snap to another nearby object. This feature lets you create multiobject drawings more quickly and is usually helpful.
  • In the Grid settings area, you can use the Horizontal spacing text box and the Vertical spacing text box to change the size of the grid's rectangles.
  • In the Grid origin area, select the Use margins check box if you want the grid to start at the document's margins. If you need to position objects in the margins, clear the Use margins check box, and then set the horizontal starting position for the grid in the Horizontal origin text box and the vertical starting position in the Vertical origin text box.
  • Display gridlines on screen - Select this check box if you want to see gridlines onscreen. Seeing them can be helpful for positioning objects, but they tend to make working with text hard.
  • Vertical every - Select this check box if you want to see vertical gridlines. In the text box, specify the number of vertical grid intervals between displayed lines.
  • Horizontal every - In this text box, specify the number of horizontal grid intervals between displayed lines.
    Gridlines in Word 2003
  • If you want to make these grid settings the default for the current template, click the Default... button, and then click Yes in the confirmation dialog box:
    Drawing Grid in Word 2003

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