Microsoft Word has many fancy formatting text effects you can apply to your documents. The color gradient is one of the fanciest formatting effects available in Word.
That formatting option enables you to add a mixture of colors that merge (or blend) together across selected text or shapes. This is how you can give your documents a bit more style by applying colorful gradients to standard or WordArt text in Microsoft Word.
How to Add a Gradient Fill Color Effect to Text in Word
You can apply a gradient effect to text with Word’s Font Color option. That fill tool includes a Gradient subcategory with which you can set custom color gradient variations. It’s an advanced utility with which you can tweak numerous gradient fill settings to make your text more stylish in Word.
To add a color gradient with that tool, input some text into a document; select the text you want to apply the effect to by holding the left mouse button and dragging the cursor over it. Click the small arrow for the Font Color option on the Home tab. Then select Gradient > More gradients to bring up a Format Text Effects sidebar.
Click the Gradient fill radio button to view the settings for applying gradients. The Gradient stops bar there enables you to set the colors included within the gradient and how they blend. To select colors, click the sliders on the Gradient stops bar and the Color option. Then you can choose colors for the gradient on the palette.
Refine the gradient effect by dragging the sliders on the bar. Each slider represents a stopping point for one color and the beginning of another. Experiment by dragging the sliders left and right to see how the gradient effect changes.
You can add or remove gradient stops to include more or fewer colors. Click the Add gradient stop button to add another slider to the bar. Or select a slider to delete and click the Remove gradient stop button.
After setting the colors and stops of the gradient, choose a preset for it; click the Preset gradients drop-down menu to choose a preset there. Select a Linear, Radial, Rectangular, or Path option on the Type drop-down menu. You can change the direction of the gradient by clicking the Direction menu and selecting an option from there.
Below the Gradient stops bar, you can change some additional Transparency and Brightness settings. Drag the Transparency bar’s slider to the right if you prefer the text to be less opaque. You can darken the text by dragging the Brightness bar’s slider to the left.
How to Add a Gradient Fill Line Effect to Text in Word
The Format Text Effects sidebar includes a Text Outline subsection with a Gradient line radio button. You can add a text outline with a color gradient effect by selecting that option. It’s best to apply such an effect to larger WordArt text that can have bigger and more noticeable outlines.
You can apply a gradient outline, much the same as a fill effect. Select the text to add a gradient line to and bring up the Format Text Effects sidebar. Click Text Outline in the sidebar and select Gradient line. Then adjust the settings for the gradient line color as covered above for the text-filling effect.
However, there are additional settings for adjusting the text outline below the gradient options. You can change the line’s width by clicking the Width box and inputting a higher or lower value. Increasing the width of the line will make it more noticeable.
Below are a couple of options with which you can change the line style. Click on the Compound type menu to select Simple, Double, or Triple line options. You can add a dot or dash effect to the line by choosing an option on the Dash type drop-down menu.
When you’re all done, click the X button on the Format Text Effects sidebar to close it. You can refine the effect by selecting the text again and selecting the More gradients option. Below is an example of a red/blue gradient color combination applied to a double-line outline.
Add Cool Gradient Color Effects to Text in Microsoft Word
Now you can add dazzling multicolored gradients to text passages, headings, or subheadings in Word documents. Such color gradients generally work better for more decorative WordArt text. However, you can also utilize gradients to give the standard text in brochures, posters, and cover documents a little more sparkle.
