Forum Discussion
Weird Word Layout Issue : Annoying Grey rectangle on the right
Hello everyone ,
I am in the almost desperate need for help regarding a Word document layout issue.
This issue happens quite often, especially when the document has been translated using DeepL
The issue goes as following
There is a grey rectangle on the right of the text.
I have checked and there is no comments
( a common root of the problem according to youtube videos and other blogs threads )
What is odd , is when I delete the gray rectangle
- that is on every single of the 20 pages of the document-
The whole layout and text stays stuck on the left.
As if it had been crushed there by the gray rectangle and isn't able to spring back into place.
Take a look and let me know what you think !
Any help is welcomed
IrvinT Your screen shot shows that the grey area is a rectangle drawing object anchored in the page header, so it appears on every page. The little black dots on the corners and sides of the rectangle are the distinctive indications of an object.
To remove it, first double-click in the header area to open it for editing. Then you can click on the rectangle to select it, and press the Delete key.
If the text doesn't expand to fill the space between the margins, check the Paragraph settings for a non-zero right indent value, first in the style applied to the text and then in the Paragraph properties of the individual paragraphs.
IrvinT Your screen shot shows that the grey area is a rectangle drawing object anchored in the page header, so it appears on every page. The little black dots on the corners and sides of the rectangle are the distinctive indications of an object.
To remove it, first double-click in the header area to open it for editing. Then you can click on the rectangle to select it, and press the Delete key.
If the text doesn't expand to fill the space between the margins, check the Paragraph settings for a non-zero right indent value, first in the style applied to the text and then in the Paragraph properties of the individual paragraphs.
Please provide a link to a sample document with the problem.
Why a sample file is important for troubleshooting - - - - - - - and how to do it.
I assume that this is one document and does not occur in new documents.
Thanks for replying !
Actually it tends to happen in documents that have been translated through deepl.
So does it really matter if the document is new or not ?
Also , I am afraid that I would have to ask for permission to share the full document. I will let you know if this inquiery gets appoved on my side !
Thanks again
Jay has likely answered your question.
"Translated through deepl" has no meaning to me. If deepl is a program or process, it is likely the source of the problem.
If it is occurring in new documents, the problem is likely in your Normal.dotm template or in an Add-In. That is a diagnostic question.
Please read the linked article about sharing the file. We do not need the entire file; you can remove confidential or proprietary information and the article tells you how. What we need is a sample file that has the problem. You are asking for help from your fellow users here.
IrvinT This grey window thing also happens if you have left track changes on in a word document, and have show markup ticked.
Go to the review pane, accept all changes in document and turn track changes off.
Just to be sure, turn show all markup to show no markup.
This was driving me crazy too.
Your observation is reasonable because the Markup area would look similar to the graphical object shown in the OP's screen shot. However, note that the OP confirmed Jay's response to be the solution (Accepted Answer).
