Excel XP: Moving, Copying, and Deleting Cell Contents (2024)

Lesson 4: Moving, Copying, and Deleting Cell Contents

Cut, Copy, and Paste defined

Cut, Copy, and Paste are useful operations in Excel XP. You can quickly copy and/or cut information in cells and paste them into other cells. These operations save you from having to type and retype the same information.

The Cut, Copy, and Paste buttons are located on the Standard toolbar.

The Cut, Copy, and Paste operations also appear as choices in the Edit menu.

The Cut, Copy, and Paste operations can also be performed using shortcut keys.

Copying and pasting cell contents

The Copy feature allows you to copy selected information from the spreadsheet and temporarily place it on the Clipboard, which is a temporary storage file in your computer's memory. The Paste feature allows you to select any of the collected items on the Clipboard and paste it in a cell of the same or different spreadsheet.

To copy and paste:

• Select a cell or cells to be duplicated.
• Click the Copy button on the Standard toolbar.
• The border of the copied cell(s) takes on the appearance of marching ants.

  

• Click the cell where you want to place the duplicated information. The cell will be highlighted. If you are copying contents into more than one cell, click the first cell where you want to place the duplicated information.

  

• Press the Enter key. Your information is copied to the new location.

Be careful if you paste copied cell information into cells that already contain data. If you do, the existing data is overwritten.

You can copy information from many different sources—including websites, emails, or other Office applications like Word and PowerPoint—and paste it into an Excel spreadsheet.

Cutting and pasting cell contents

The Cut feature allows you to remove information from cells in the spreadsheet. Information that is cut can be pasted in another cell, as long as the pasting occurs before you perform another operation. If you don't paste the cut information immediately, it is removed from the Office clipboard.

To cut and paste:

• Select a cell or cells to be cut.
• Click the Cut button on the Standard toolbar.
• The information in the cell is deleted.
• The border of the cut cell(s) take on the appearance of marching ants.
• Click the cell where you want to place the duplicated information. The cell will be highlighted. If you are copying contents into more than one cell, click the first cell where you want to place the duplicated information.

  

• Press the Enter key. Your information is pasted to the new location.

You do not have to paste information that has been cut. You can use Cut to delete information from a cell.

Moving information using the drag-and-drop method

Another way to move information from one cell to another is to use the drag-and-drop method. You use the cursor to point to the information to be moved and then drag the cell to its new location.

To use drag and drop:

• Highlight and select the cell(s) you want to move to a new location.
• Position the mouse pointer near one of the outside edges of the selected cell(s). The mouse pointer changes from a large white cross into a slender black cross with arrows at all ends.

  

• Keep the mouse pointer on the outer edge of the selected cell, click and hold the left mouse button, and drag the cell(s) to a new location.

  

• Release the mouse button to move the information to its new location.

Challenge!

• Type the words cut in cell A1, copy in cell B1, and paste in cell C1.
• Highlight a cell range to include cell A1 and cell B1.
• Move the cell range to cell D1 and cell E1.
• Cut the information in cell E1 (it should be the word copy).
• Paste the cut information in cell A1.
• Copy the contents of cell A1 (it should be the word copy).
• Paste the copied information in cell F1.