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how to delete section break in word

You delete a section break in Word by first making it visible, then selecting and deleting it, or by using Find and Replace to remove many at once.

Quick Scoop: Why Section Breaks Are Annoying

Section breaks control page layout, headers/footers, margins, and columns, so deleting one can suddenly change your formatting. Think of them as hidden “formatting borders” between parts of your document.

Method 1: Delete a Single Section Break

  1. Turn on formatting marks
    • Go to Home → click the ¶ Show/Hide button to display hidden marks, including section breaks.
 * You’ll see something like “Section Break (Next Page)” or “Section Break (Continuous)” across the page.
  1. Select the section break
    • Click just before the section break line, or double‑click/drag over the entire break text to highlight it.
  1. Delete it
    • Press Delete or Backspace on your keyboard.

If it refuses to delete, switch to View → Draft , select the break there, delete it, then go back to Print Layout.

⚠️ Note: When you delete a section break, Word merges the two sections and applies the formatting from the section that followed the break.

Method 2: Use Find and Replace (Delete Many at Once)

This is handy if your document is full of section breaks.

  1. Open Find and Replace
    • Press Ctrl + H (Windows) or use Home → Replace.
  1. Tell Word to find section breaks
    • Click More >> in the dialog box.
 * Click **Special** → choose **Section Break** ; you’ll see **^b** appear in the **Find what** box.
  1. Leave Replace empty
    • Make sure Replace with is completely blank so Word replaces the breaks with nothing.
  1. Delete them
    • Click Replace to remove one at a time, or Replace All to delete every section break in the document.

This can radically change your page layout, so it’s smart to save a copy before using Replace All.

Method 3: If You Still Can’t Delete It

Sometimes the break is “stubborn” because of settings or view issues.

  • Check Track Changes
    • If Track Changes is on, you might not be able to remove section breaks smoothly.
* Go to **Review → Track Changes** and turn it off, then try deleting again.
  • Try Draft view again
    • View → Draft , then select and delete the break; this view often makes tricky breaks easier to grab.
  • Use the margin to select
    • Hover in the left margin next to the line with the section break until the cursor changes, click to select the line, then press Delete.

Formatting Tip: Avoid Wrecking Your Layout

Because section breaks carry different settings (orientation, headers, margins, columns), deleting one can break your layout if you’re not careful.

  • Before you delete:
    • Note which pages have different headers/footers, margins, or orientation.
  • After you delete:
    • Check that page numbers, headers, and orientation still look right.
* If you only needed the same header/footer, sometimes using **“Link to Previous”** on the Header & Footer Tools is better than deleting the break.

Short TL;DR

  • Show , click the section break , press Delete/Backspace for quick fixes.
  • Use Find and Replace → Special → Section Break ( ^b ) → Replace All to wipe many at once, but expect layout changes.

Information gathered from public forums or data available on the internet and portrayed here.