Cut, Copy, Paste selected text

Once text is selected, it can be edited and moved as a group. This article presents three related basic functions of Writer:

  • Cut
  • Copy
  • Paste
Cut

This removes the selected text and other items, if they were selected, from the document and places them in a clipboard. Its purpose is to remove the selected items from their location in a document, so they can be placed elsewhere in the document or another document.

There are several different ways to cut a selection:

  • Keystrokes
  • Icons in various toolbars
    • Standard toolbar in Default view
    • Tabbed
    • Tabbed Compact
    • Groupedbar Full
    • Groupedbar Compact
  • Through the Edit menu and right-click menu
Keystrokes

Like many basic functions, cutting a selection can be done by pressing two keys together.

  • Ctrl + X, if you are using Windows or a Linux distro.
  • Cmd + X, if you are using a Mac.
Icon in the Standard toolbar and other user interfaces

The Standard toolbar is the most used toolbar in LibreOffice Writer. It has a scissor icon for the Cut function. Simply click the icon to remove the selected text and other items.

Cut, scissor icons are also in many of the experimental user interfaces that can be selected through the Notebookbar sub-menu in the View menu.

  • Tabbed: It is located in the Home ribbon. The icon is in the first section, with the Paste icon and copy icon.
  • Tabbed Compact: It is located in the Home ribbon. The icon is in the first section, with the Paste icon and copy icon.
  • Groupedbar Full: The icon is in the second section, with the Paste icon and copy icon. It is also located in the Edit drop-down menu in the same section.
  • Groupedbar Compact: The icon is in the second section, with the Paste icon and copy icon. It is also located in the Edit drop-down menu in the same section.
Through the Edit menu and right-click menu
Right clicking on selected text will reveal a menu that is similar to the Edit menu. It has cut, copy, and paste items. The menu makes it easy to perform one of these functions on the selection of text because it appears next to it.

The cut item is also available through the Edit menu and when you click the right-mouse button. For it to appear in the menu, you must right-click on part of the selected text or items.

Copy

Copy is one of the most used functions in any word processor. It allows text to be selected in a document in order to be placed elsewhere in the document or in another document.

There are several different ways to cut a selection:

  • Keystrokes
  • Icons in various toolbars
    • Standard toolbar in Default view
    • Tabbed
    • Tabbed Compact
    • Groupedbar Full
    • Groupedbar Compact
  • Through the Edit menu and right-click menu
Keystrokes
  • Ctrl + C, if you are using Windows or a Linux distro.
  • Cmd + C, if you are using a Mac
Icon various toolbars

As with the Cut function, Copy has an icon that is in toolbars in several different user interfaces. The icon is located in the same area as the Cut and Paste icons.

Here are the the user interfaces:

  • Tabbed: It is located in the Home ribbon. The icon is in the first section.
  • Tabbed Compact: It is located in the Home ribbon. The icon is in the first section.
  • Groupedbar Full: The icon is in the second section. It is also located in the Edit drop-down menu in the same section.
  • Groupedbar Compact: The icon is in the second section. It is also located in the Edit drop-down menu in the same section.
Through the Edit menu and right-click menu

Like Cut and Paste, the Copy item is in the Edit menu and the menu that appears when the right-button on the mouse.

Paste

Paste function, in a way is the opposite of the cut and copy functions. It places the selected text in a new location. While cut and copy functions only have one option, there are several choices for pasting the selected text.

Text, images, tables, and other objects can be pasted into a Writer document. The paste choices differ based on which type of object is in the clipboard. Since this article is under the text section of the Website, just the choices for pasting text will be covered here. Other sections of the Website will cover pasting other items.

There are several other options for pasting:

  • Paste Unformatted Text
  • Paste Special

There are several ways to use the default paste option.

  • Keystrokes
  • Icons in various toolbars
    • Standard toolbar in Default view
    • Tabbed
    • Tabbed Compact
    • Groupedbar Full
    • Groupedbar Compact
  • Through the Edit menu and right-click menu
Keystrokes
  • Pressing Ctrl+V on a Windows computer or Linux distro.
  • The keystroke is Cmd+V, if you are using a Mac.
Icon various toolbars
  • Tabbed: It is located in the Home ribbon. The icon is in the first section.
  • Tabbed Compact: It is located in the Home ribbon. The icon is in the first section.
  • Groupedbar Full: The icon is in the second section. It is also located in the Edit drop-down menu in the same section.
  • Groupedbar Compact: The icon is in the second section. It is also located in the Edit drop-down menu in the same section.
Through the Edit menu and right-click menu

Tabbed

The first section of the Home tab contains the Paste icon. It has the drop-down menu with alternative ways of pasting.

Tabbed Compact

The first section of the Home tab contains the Paste icon. It has the drop-down menu with alternative ways of pasting. It is smaller than the one the Tabbed user interface.

Groupedbar Full

The paste icon and its associated drop-down menu are located in the second section. The default paste item is in the edit drop-down menu for the section.

Groupedbar Compact

This is the same as Groupedbar Full. It and its drop-down menu are located in the second section. The default paste item is in the edit drop-down menu for the section.