If you have worked with Google Docs in the past then you have probably familiarized yourself with how to select part of your document and change something about it. This could be something like replacing a misspelled word or changing a name that appears multiple times throughout a document.
But you are also able to select punctuation, like every period in a document, using the Find and replace tool in Google Docs. This is a very efficient way to not only locate each instance of a word or character in your document but to also quickly replace those instances with something else. It’s faster and more accurate (in most cases) than doing it yourself manually.
While the standard find and replace utility is able to replace instances of words, you can use an add-on called “Advanced Find and Replace” that lets you change the formatting for your selections as well.
Our guide below will show you how to find and install this add-on then use it to change the size of all of the periods in a document in Google Docs.
How to Change Period Size – Google Docs
- Open a document.
- Click Add-ons.
- Choose Get add-ons.
- Type “advanced find and replace” into the search field.
- Choose the Find and Replace add-on from Digital Thoughts and install it.
- Click Add-ons.
- Select Advanced Find and Replace.
- Choose Find and replace.
- Type a period into the Find field.
- Type a period into the Replace field.
- Click the Size dropdown and choose a size.
- Click Replace Selected/All.
Our article continues below with additional information on how to change the size of all periods in Google Docs Note that you will only need to install this add-on the first time that you use it. You can follow steps 6-12 after that when you need to perform an action like this.
How to Increase the Size of All Periods in Google Docs (Guide with Pictures)
The steps in this article were performed in the desktop version of the Google Chrome Web browser but will also work in other desktop browsers like Mozilla Firefox or Apple Safari.
Note that you will need to install a third-party add on for this process and that you only get a limited number of free find and replace actions each month. You will need to buy a premium upgrade if you need to do more than 30 of these each month.
Step 1: Sign into Google Drive and open your document.
Step 2: Select the Add-ons tab at the top of the window.
Step 3: Choose the Get add-ons option from the drop down menu.
Step 4. Type “advanced find and replace” into the search field.
Step 5: Click the “Advanced Find and Replace” search result from the Digital Thoughts developer.
Step 6: Complete the steps in the prompts to confirm installation and give the add-on permissions to view your documents.
Step 7: Click Add-ons at the top of the window.
Step 8: Select the Advanced Find and Replace option from the list of installed add-ons.
Step 9: Choose the Find and replace option.
Step 10: Type a period into the Find field in the right column.
Step 11: Type another period into the Replace field.
Step 12: Click the Size drop-down menu and select the desired font size from the list.
Step 13: Click the blue Replace Selected/All button.
Can I Also Change the Font Style Using the Advanced Find and Replace Search Box?
Aside from letting you select all the periods in a document and making those periods bigger or smaller, this fun add on lets you change the all the fonts for a selection as well.
You will simply need to click the Font button once you have entered you values into the Find box and the Replace box and choose the desired option.
Frequently Asked Questions About How to Change Size of Periods in Google Docs
The steps in this article were performed in the desktop version of the Google Chrome Web browser. These steps will also work in other desktop Web browsers like Mozilla Firefox, Microsoft Edge, or Apple Safari.
How to select all periods in Docs
You can use the “Find” tool to select all of the periods in the document. Simply press Ctrl + F on your keyboard, then type a period into the search field.
How to change period size Google Docs
A period is just a character in a Google Docs document, so the process of resizing it is essentially the same.
You will need to select the period in your document, then click the + or – button next to font size if you want to increase the size of a period in Google Docs or decrease the size of a period in Google Docs, respectively.
How to highlight all periods in Google Docs
Choosing to highlight all of the periods in your document is similar to selecting all of the periods in Google Docs. You can press Ctrl + F to open the Find tool, then type a period “.” into the field. All of the periods in the document should then be selected.
How to increase period size in Google Docs
You will increase the size of a period by selecting it in your document, then
How to change the font of all periods in Google Docs
You will need to use the “Advanced Find and Replace” add on that we discuss in the steps above to accomplish this.
Once you have installed the add-on you can click Add-ons at the top of the window, select Advanced Find and Replace, then click the Find and replace option. You can then type a period into the “Find” field, type a period into the “Replace” field, then choose the desired font and click Replace All.
How to change the font of all periods in Microsoft Word
The Microsoft Word “Find and replace” tool is a little more robust than the Google Docs alternative by default. To change the font size of all periods in Word you can open your document, then click the Replace button in the Editing section of the Home tab.
You can then type a period into the “Find what” field, type another period into the “Replace with” field, then click the “More” button.
Click the “Format” button and choose the “Font” option. Select the desired font size, then click “OK.”
You can then click the “Replace All” button to complete the process.
Additional Information on How to Change the Size of Periods in Google Docs
When you start working with making large changes in a document it can be useful to know how to make quick selections or to undo a change that was just applied to a lot of document elements.
One of these actions involves undoing a change that you have just performed. You can accomplish this by going to Edit > Undo in the menu at the top of the window, or you can press Ctrl + Z on your keyboard.
A similar action involves redoing something that you just undid. You can also do this by going to Edit > Redo or you can use the Ctrl + Y keyboard shortcut.
The Find and Replace functions in Google Docs also have keyboard shortcuts.
The keyboard shortcut for Replace is Ctrl + H, which opens the Find and Replace window. You can then type the words, text, or symbols that you want to find into the Find field, then type their replacement into the Replace field.
When you have installed the Advanced Find and Replace add on in Google Docs you can do much more than just change the size of periods in your document. You can also use this to apply formatting changes quickly to large parts of your document. These changes include things like using a new font, changing font colors, changing size as we already saw, using subscript and superscript, and more.
If you are having trouble changing the formatting of a selection using the options in the toolbar, whether it’s for a text selection or a punctuation mark, then you can always click the Format tab and make your selection there instead.
If you don’t want to install the add-on then you can press Ctrl + F to bring up the search bar, enter your period into the search field, then click the button with three dots. You can then change the size of the font, enter a period into the Replace field, then click Next. You will need to repeat this process for the whole document, so it’s a lot less efficient than using the add-on which will take care of the entire document at once.