Word is showing all of my formatting (paragraph symbols, etc) How do I fix it?

First, don’t worry. None of the characters print.

The dots, which replace blanks, certainly are a nuisance, but those ¶ symbols are really your friends. They show exactly where each paragraph ends. Since all paragraph formatting (tabs, indents, margins, line spacing, before and after paragraph spacing, ...) is attached to them, accidentally deleting one can cause mysterious reformatting problems. I've found it's nice to know where they are.

Now, the other characters that may also appear aren't as useful and can be safely turned off. Here's how:

In Word versions prior to Word 2007 (Vista):

1. Click the Tools->Options menu item.

2. Click the View tab.

3. Under Formatting Marks, select ONLY Paragraph Marks and deselect all others.

4. Click OK.

In Word 2007, do this:

1. Click the Office Button.

2. Click the Word Options button.

3. On the left side of the dialog box, click Display.

4. Under Always Show These Formatting Marks On The Screen, put a check mark next to Paragraph Marks.

5. Make sure all the other entries in this section are unchecked.

6. Click OK.

If you still want to get rid of the marks, do this instead:

In earlier versions:

1. Click the ¶ button on the formatting toolbar.

In Word 2007:

1. Click the ¶ button in the Paragraph section of the Home tab.

That's it.

There is a symbol on the toolbar that looks like a backwards P or a music symbol. Toggle it off.

Turn off your show/hide button. It looks like a backwards paragraph sign.