How to Delete Lines in Microsoft Word (Every Method Explained)

Deleting a line in Microsoft Word sounds simple — until you try it and nothing works the way you expect. That's because "line" means different things in Word, and each type requires a different approach. Whether you're dealing with a stubborn horizontal rule, an unwanted paragraph break, or a line of text you just want gone, the fix depends on what kind of line you're actually looking at.

The Two Types of Lines in Word (and Why It Matters)

Before you reach for the Delete key, it helps to identify what you're working with:

• A line of text — a row of typed content that you want to remove
• A horizontal line (border or rule) — a visible dividing line that was inserted as a page element, not typed text

These behave completely differently in Word. A line of text responds to standard keyboard deletion. A horizontal rule is a formatting element — and pressing Delete won't touch it.

Misidentifying which type you have is the most common reason people get stuck.

How to Delete a Line of Text

This is the straightforward case. To remove a single line of typed content:

1. Click at the beginning of the line you want to delete
2. Press Home to make sure you're at the start of the line
3. Hold Shift and press End to select the entire line
4. Press Delete or Backspace

If you also want to remove the blank line left behind (the paragraph mark), press Backspace once more after deleting the text.

Faster alternative: Triple-click anywhere on the line to select the full paragraph, then press Delete.

Deleting Multiple Lines at Once

To remove several lines together:

• Click at the start of the first line
• Hold Shift and click at the end of the last line
• Press Delete

Or use Ctrl+Shift+End (Windows) / Cmd+Shift+End (Mac) to select from your cursor position to the end of the document — useful for clearing large blocks of unwanted content.

How to Delete a Horizontal Line (The Tricky One) 🔧

This is where most people run into trouble. Word creates horizontal lines automatically when you type certain character sequences — three hyphens (---), three underscores (___), or three equal signs (===) followed by Enter. These get converted into paragraph border formatting, not actual typed characters.

Because of that, selecting the line and pressing Delete won't work. The line is attached to the paragraph above it as a bottom border.

Method 1: Use the Borders menu

1. Click on the paragraph directly above the horizontal line
2. Go to Home → Paragraph section → click the dropdown arrow next to the Borders button (looks like a grid)
3. Select No Border

The line disappears immediately.

Method 2: Use Format → Borders and Shading

1. Click the paragraph above the line
2. Go to Design (or Format in older versions) → Borders → Borders and Shading
3. Under the Borders tab, select None
4. Click OK

Method 3: Undo AutoFormat immediately

If the line just appeared after you typed characters and pressed Enter, press Ctrl+Z right away. This reverses the AutoFormat action before it sets in.

Turning Off AutoFormat Lines Entirely

If Word keeps creating these lines automatically and you don't want them:

1. Go to File → Options → Proofing → AutoCorrect Options
2. Click the AutoFormat As You Type tab
3. Uncheck Border lines

After this, typing --- and pressing Enter will just leave dashes on the page — no automatic line conversion.

Deleting Lines in a Table

If your document contains a table and you want to remove a row (which can look like a "line"):

1. Click anywhere in the row you want to delete
2. Right-click → Delete Rows

Or go to the Layout tab (appears when you're inside a table) → Delete → Delete Rows.

Note: pressing Delete while a table row is selected clears the content but keeps the empty row. You need the right-click method to remove the row itself.

Deleting Lines Inserted as Shapes or Drawing Objects

Some documents — especially those built from templates — use line shapes drawn with Word's drawing tools. These look like horizontal rules but behave like objects.

To delete one:

1. Click directly on the line — you should see handles appear at each end
2. Press Delete

If clicking doesn't select it, try holding Alt while clicking, or go to Home → Select → Selection Pane to find and select the line object from a list.

Quick Reference: Which Method for Which Line? 📋

One Variable That Changes Everything

Your approach will also vary depending on which version of Word you're using. The menu locations for borders and AutoFormat settings differ between Word 2016, Word 2019, Microsoft 365, and Word for Mac. The underlying logic is the same across versions, but the tab names and ribbon layout can shift.

Documents built by someone else — or downloaded from templates — sometimes contain lines created through methods you might not immediately recognize: macros, styles, section formatting, or embedded shapes. What looks like a simple horizontal line could be any one of these, which is why the same delete action produces different results depending on the source. 🔍

Knowing which type of line you're dealing with in your specific document is the piece that determines which fix actually works.