Microsoft Word Interview Questions and Answers

This section covers frequently asked Microsoft Word interview questions, focusing on its features, functionalities, and practical applications in document creation and management.

What is Microsoft Word?

Microsoft Word is a widely used word-processing software application developed by Microsoft. It's part of the Microsoft Office suite and is used for creating and editing documents of all kinds.

Main Components of MS Word

The main components of the Microsoft Word interface (Ribbon) include the tabs: Home, Insert, Page Layout, References, Mailings, Review, and View. Each tab contains groups of related commands and tools.

Prominent Features of MS Word

Key features include:

  • Spell checking and grammar checking.
  • Font formatting (style, size, color).
  • Image and video insertion.
  • Table and chart creation.
  • Templates.
  • Various view layouts.
  • Footnote/endnote insertion.
  • Creating hyperlinks.
  • Cross-referencing

Latest Version of MS Word

The latest version is Microsoft 365 (formerly Office 365), a subscription service including Word and other applications.

Creating Macros in MS Word

  1. Go to the "View" tab and click "Macros".
  2. Click "Record Macro".
  3. Name the macro and optionally assign a keyboard shortcut.
  4. Perform the actions you want to record.
  5. Click "Stop Recording".

Inserting Footnotes and Endnotes

  1. Go to the "References" tab.
  2. Click "Insert Footnote" or "Insert Endnote".
  3. Type your footnote or endnote.

Connecting to Cloud Services (OneDrive)

  1. Open MS Word.
  2. Go to OneDrive.
  3. Click "Sign in" and enter your credentials.

Creating Cross-References

  1. Place your cursor where you want the cross-reference.
  2. Go to the "References" tab and click "Cross-reference".
  3. Select the reference type and insert it.

Hyperlink Shortcut Key

Ctrl+K is the shortcut to create a hyperlink.

Creating Custom Toolbars

  1. Go to "View" > "Toolbars" > "Customize".
  2. Click "Toolbars" and then "New".
  3. Name the toolbar.
  4. Drag and drop commands onto the toolbar.

Adding or Removing Menu Items

You can customize menus by adding or removing commands using the "Customize" dialog box (accessible through the "Toolbars" option in the "View" menu).

"Ctrl+N" Shortcut

Ctrl+N opens a new blank document in MS Word.

Creating User Entry Forms

  1. Enable the "Developer" tab (File > Options > Customize Ribbon).
  2. Use the controls in the "Developer" tab (checkboxes, dropdown lists, etc.) to create your form.

Taking Screenshots in MS Word 2013

  1. Go to the "Insert" tab > "Illustrations".
  2. Click "Screenshot" > "Screen Clipping".
  3. Select the area to capture.

Inserting Captions

  1. Select an image.
  2. Go to the "References" tab.
  3. Click "Insert Caption".

Editing PDF Documents in MS Word

  1. Open the PDF file in Word.
  2. Enable editing (if necessary).
  3. Make your edits.
  4. Save the file.

Customizing Indent Amount

  1. Select the text.
  2. Go to the "Page Layout" tab.
  3. Adjust the left or right indent values.

Unlocking Restricted Editing

  1. Go to the "Restrict Editing" section on the "Review" tab.
  2. Click "Stop Protection".
  3. Enter the password.

Moving to the Document Beginning

The keyboard shortcut Ctrl+Home moves the cursor to the beginning of the document.

Creating Hanging Indents

  1. Select the text.
  2. Click the Paragraph dialog launcher (in the "Paragraph" group of the "Home" tab).
  3. Go to "Indents and Spacing".
  4. Select "Hanging" under "Special".
  5. Adjust indent and spacing.
  6. Click "OK".

Macros in Word Processing

Macros automate repetitive tasks by recording or writing code (VBA - Visual Basic for Applications) to perform specific actions. Macros can be triggered using keyboard shortcuts or menu commands.

Editing Labels in Charts

  1. Double-click the chart title or data label to edit its text.
  2. Click outside the text box to finish editing.

Creating Watermarks

  1. Go to the "Page Layout" tab.
  2. Click "Watermark".
  3. Choose a predefined watermark or create a custom watermark (text or picture).

Removing Watermarks

  1. Go to the "Page Layout" tab > "Watermark" > "Remove Watermark".
  2. (Alternative) Double-click the header, select the watermark, and press Delete.

Inserting Sounds

  1. Go to the "Insert" tab.
  2. Click "Object".
  3. Select "Create from File" and choose your sound file.
  4. Click "OK".

Saving Charts as Templates

To reuse chart formatting, save a chart as a template. You can then apply the template's formatting to new charts.

Text Collapsing

Text collapsing lets you hide sections of a document based on heading levels, improving readability of lengthy documents.

Page Break Shortcut

The shortcut Ctrl+Enter inserts a page break.

Comparing Documents

Use the "Compare" feature (in the "Review" tab) to identify differences between two documents.

Adding Data Labels to Charts

Data labels add text to individual data points in charts, making it easier to understand the data values represented in the chart.

Moving to the Document Beginning (Shortcut)

Use Ctrl+Home to move the cursor to the very beginning of your document.

Accepting/Rejecting Tracked Changes

Tracked changes allow you to review edits made to a document. You can accept or reject individual changes or accept/reject all changes at once. You can also delete comments.

Document Inspector

The Document Inspector is a tool that checks documents for hidden data, such as tracked changes, comments, metadata, and other potentially sensitive information. It's often used as a final step before sharing a document.

  1. Go to "File" > "Info" > "Check for Issues" > "Inspect Document".

Footnotes and Endnotes

Footnotes and endnotes provide additional information or citations within a document. Footnotes appear at the bottom of the page; endnotes appear at the end of the document.