How to Delete Citations in Word

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This wikiHow teaches you how to remove citations in Microsoft Word. A citation is a reference to an external source that is surrounded by parentheses and imbedded within text.

Removing In-Text Citations in Word

  1. Click inside of the citation.
  2. Click the grey dots on the side of the citation.
  3. Press Del on your keyboard.
  4. Click Manage Sources and select the source.
  5. Click Delete .

Steps

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  1. {"smallUrl":"https:\/\/www.wikihow.com\/images\/thumb\/1\/10\/Delete-Citations-in-Word-Step-1.jpg\/v4-460px-Delete-Citations-in-Word-Step-1.jpg","bigUrl":"\/images\/thumb\/1\/10\/Delete-Citations-in-Word-Step-1.jpg\/aid11841388-v4-728px-Delete-Citations-in-Word-Step-1.jpg","smallWidth":460,"smallHeight":345,"bigWidth":728,"bigHeight":546,"licensing":"<div class=\"mw-parser-output\"><p>License: <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer noopener\" class=\"external text\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Fair_use\">Fair Use<\/a> (screenshot)<br>\n<\/p><\/div>"}
    The citation is stored as a text box; once you click into it, between the parentheses, the text box will become visible.
  2. {"smallUrl":"https:\/\/www.wikihow.com\/images\/thumb\/4\/44\/Delete-Citations-in-Word-Step-2.jpg\/v4-460px-Delete-Citations-in-Word-Step-2.jpg","bigUrl":"\/images\/thumb\/4\/44\/Delete-Citations-in-Word-Step-2.jpg\/aid11841388-v4-728px-Delete-Citations-in-Word-Step-2.jpg","smallWidth":460,"smallHeight":345,"bigWidth":728,"bigHeight":546,"licensing":"<div class=\"mw-parser-output\"><p>License: <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer noopener\" class=\"external text\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Fair_use\">Fair Use<\/a> (screenshot)<br>\n<\/p><\/div>"}
    This will select the entire text box rather than just the text inside it.
    • The text box will change from gray to blue when it is selected.
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  3. {"smallUrl":"https:\/\/www.wikihow.com\/images\/thumb\/1\/15\/Delete-Citations-in-Word-Step-3.jpg\/v4-460px-Delete-Citations-in-Word-Step-3.jpg","bigUrl":"\/images\/thumb\/1\/15\/Delete-Citations-in-Word-Step-3.jpg\/aid11841388-v4-728px-Delete-Citations-in-Word-Step-3.jpg","smallWidth":460,"smallHeight":345,"bigWidth":728,"bigHeight":546,"licensing":"<div class=\"mw-parser-output\"><p>License: <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer noopener\" class=\"external text\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Fair_use\">Fair Use<\/a> (screenshot)<br>\n<\/p><\/div>"}
    This will delete the citation from the document text.
  4. {"smallUrl":"https:\/\/www.wikihow.com\/images\/thumb\/3\/33\/Delete-Citations-in-Word-Step-4.jpg\/v4-460px-Delete-Citations-in-Word-Step-4.jpg","bigUrl":"\/images\/thumb\/3\/33\/Delete-Citations-in-Word-Step-4.jpg\/aid11841388-v4-728px-Delete-Citations-in-Word-Step-4.jpg","smallWidth":460,"smallHeight":345,"bigWidth":728,"bigHeight":546,"licensing":"<div class=\"mw-parser-output\"><p>License: <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer noopener\" class=\"external text\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Fair_use\">Fair Use<\/a> (screenshot)<br>\n<\/p><\/div>"}
    This is in the "Citations & Bibliography" sections of the References tab.
  5. {"smallUrl":"https:\/\/www.wikihow.com\/images\/thumb\/5\/56\/Delete-Citations-in-Word-Step-5.jpg\/v4-460px-Delete-Citations-in-Word-Step-5.jpg","bigUrl":"\/images\/thumb\/5\/56\/Delete-Citations-in-Word-Step-5.jpg\/aid11841388-v4-728px-Delete-Citations-in-Word-Step-5.jpg","smallWidth":460,"smallHeight":345,"bigWidth":728,"bigHeight":546,"licensing":"<div class=\"mw-parser-output\"><p>License: <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer noopener\" class=\"external text\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Fair_use\">Fair Use<\/a> (screenshot)<br>\n<\/p><\/div>"}
    This is a list of all added citations, even if they have been deleted from the document text.
  6. {"smallUrl":"https:\/\/www.wikihow.com\/images\/thumb\/3\/3d\/Delete-Citations-in-Word-Step-6.jpg\/v4-460px-Delete-Citations-in-Word-Step-6.jpg","bigUrl":"\/images\/thumb\/3\/3d\/Delete-Citations-in-Word-Step-6.jpg\/aid11841388-v4-728px-Delete-Citations-in-Word-Step-6.jpg","smallWidth":460,"smallHeight":345,"bigWidth":728,"bigHeight":546,"licensing":"<div class=\"mw-parser-output\"><p>License: <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noreferrer noopener\" class=\"external text\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Fair_use\">Fair Use<\/a> (screenshot)<br>\n<\/p><\/div>"}
    This removes the citation from the Sources list so that it does not appear in the "Insert Citation" drop-down.
    • If this button is grayed out, it means that you have not deleted all instances of that citation from the document text. Any currently cited sources must be removed before deleting them from the list.
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      Tips

      • Hit Ctrl + F to find all instances of a citation in the document. Type in the citation with its parentheses to get better results. If you do not remember what the citation is exactly, go to Manage Sources , select the citation from the "Current List", and note down the citation in the "Preview" section at the bottom.
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      About This Article

      Article Summary X

      1. Click into the citation to show the text box.
      2. Click on the 3 gray dots on the left of the text box.
      3. Hit Delete or Backspace .
      4. Click Manage Sources .
      5. Select the citation from the "Current List" on the right.
      6. Click Delete .

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