How can I fix microsoft word so that it is normal again?

[Emma]

I copied something off facebook chat and pasted it in microsoft word but when I did, it went strange.
Between every word there is a fullstop next to the letter and at the end of the whole sentance there is a symbol that is like a backwards p with another line at the back. I have closed microsoft but when I opened it again, it was still there.

[brayden]

Open the document. Click the round office button in the top left hand corner. Click Word options. Click display. In the section called "always show these formatting marks", uncheck all boxes that have a check mark. See if that will clear it up.

[Joel]

Word has a mode that shows these special formatting characters. You didn't say which version of Word you're using, but look for a button on the toolbar that looks like the backwards P thing (it's called a 'pilcrow', or more commonly, a paragraph mark or symbol and click on it to toggle the mode.

Ooh, there's a guide with everything you wanted to know about it at the link below.

[Bob B]

It sounds like you pasted some text that included formatting characters that Word can't decipher correctly. Does the effect continue to occur when you open a new document?

[Sven]

Another way to toggle to show/hide formatting symbols is to press ctrl, shift and 8 at the same time

[The Phlebob]

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

The dots and arrows certainly are a nuisance, but those strange ¶ 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.

If you still want to get rid of everything, press CTRL/SHIFT/8 (the 8 above the alphabetic keypad).

But if you want to turn off just the other characters and leave the ¶s, here's how:

In Word versions prior to Word 2007:

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, possibly 2010 also, do this:

1.Click the round Office button in the upper-left corner of the window, or click the File tab on the Ribbon.
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.

That's it.