Microsoft Word comments are attached to a selected location or range of document text. Word does not generally provide a simple “drag this comment to another paragraph” command. If a comment belongs somewhere else, the reliable method is to recreate it at the correct text and then remove the original.
Move a comment to different text
- Read the existing comment and copy its text if you need to preserve the exact wording.
- Select the word, sentence, or location where the comment should be attached.
- Choose Review > New Comment.
- Paste or retype the comment.
- Confirm the new comment is anchored to the intended text.
- Delete or resolve the old comment as appropriate for the review workflow.
Preserve authorship context when collaborating
Recreating another person’s comment can make the new comment appear under your name and with a new timestamp. In a formal review, it may be better to ask the original reviewer to place the comment again or reply with a note explaining why it was relocated.
Do not confuse comments with tracked changes
Comments discuss content; Track Changes records edits to the document itself. Moving or recreating a comment does not move an insertion, deletion, or formatting revision associated with Track Changes.
Modern comments can behave differently
Current Microsoft 365 versions use modern comments with posting, replies, mentions, and resolution workflows. Older perpetual Word releases can display comments differently, but the underlying idea remains that a comment is anchored to document content.
Before deleting the original comment, verify that the replacement includes any information you need. A comment thread can contain replies and history that are not preserved merely by copying the first comment’s visible text.
Kermit Matthews is a freelance writer based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania with more than a decade of experience writing technology guides. He has a Bachelor’s and Master’s degree in Computer Science and has spent much of his professional career in IT management.
He specializes in writing content about iPhones, Android devices, Microsoft Office, and many other popular applications and devices.