Chapter 4: Working with Cells and Ranges
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Selecting complete rows and columns .......................................................................
Often, you’ll need to select an entire row or column. For example, you may want to apply the same
numeric format or the same alignment options to an entire row or column. You can select entire
rows and columns in much the same manner as you select ranges:l (^) Click the row or column border to select a single row or column.
l To select multiple adjacent rows or columns, click a row or column border and drag to
highlight additional rows or columns.
l To select multiple (nonadjacent) rows or columns, press Ctrl while you click the row or
column borders that you want.
l Press Ctrl+spacebar to select a column. The column of the active cell (or columns of the
selected cells) is highlighted.
l Press Shift+spacebar to select a row. The row of the active cell (or rows of the selected
cells) is highlighted.
Tip
Press Ctrl+A to select all cells in the worksheet, which is the same as selecting all rows and all columns. If the
active cell is within a table, you may need to press Ctrl+A two or even three times to select all cells in the
worksheet. You can also click the area at the intersection of the row and column borders to select all cells. n
Selecting noncontiguous ranges.................................................................................
Most of the time, the ranges that you select are contiguous — a single rectangle of cells. Excel also
enables you to work with noncontiguous ranges, which consist of two or more ranges (or single
cells) that aren’t next to each other. Selecting noncontiguous ranges is also known as a multiple
selection. If you want to apply the same formatting to cells in different areas of your worksheet, one
approach is to make a multiple selection. When the appropriate cells or ranges are selected, the
formatting that you select is applied to them all. Figure 4.2 shows a noncontiguous range selected
in a worksheet. Three ranges are selected: A2:C3, A5:C5, and A9:C10.You can select a noncontiguous range in several ways:l Select the first range (or cell). Then press and hold Ctrl as you click and drag the mouse to
highlight additional cells or ranges.
l From the keyboard, select a range as described previously (using F8 or the Shift key). Then
press Shift+F8 to select another range without canceling the previous range selections.
l Enter the range (or cell) address in the Name box and press Enter. Separate each range
address with a comma.
l Choose Home ➪ Editing ➪ Find & Select ➪ Go To (or press F5) to display the Go To
dialog box. Enter the range (or cell) address in the Reference box and separate each range
address with a comma. Click OK, and Excel selects the ranges.