Note the checkbox about two-thirds of the way down the dialog box entitled, "Don't Add Space between paragraphs of the Same Style." This setting controls whether spacing is cumulative between any two given paragraphs if the two paragraphs use the same style. The Indents and Spacing tab of the Paragraph dialog box. Make sure the Indents and Spacing tab is displayed.To remove any spacing between paragraphs, enter 0 in the After box. To change the amount of spacing between paragraphs, adjust the value in the Before and After boxes. Select Line Spacing from the drop-down menu. Click the Line and Paragraph Spacing icon on the Ribbon. Word displays some categories of things you can specify in the style. To Change Default Paragraph Spacing in Word. Click the Format button at the bottom-left of the dialog box.Word displays the Modify Style dialog box. Click the arrow to display some options and then choose the Modify option.(As an example, hover over the Normal style.) A down-arrow appears at the right side of the style name. 3 Hover the mouse pointer over a style you want to modify.Click the small down-arrow at the lower-right corner of the Styles group.
This option is actually part of the style definitions you can create within Word. There is a caveat to my statement that "spacing is cumulative." Word has a configuration option which, under certain circumstances, can turn off the cumulative nature of spacing. You will make your design and layout work much easier if you are consistent in where you add the extra space-either before or after a paragraph. For example, if you have a paragraph that is formatted for 12 points of space after it, followed by a paragraph formatted for 15 points of space before it, then there will be 27 points of space between the paragraphs. Remember, however, that the spacing is cumulative. Word allows you to add extra space either before or after a paragraph. It is not uncommon for page layout designs to call for extra spacing between paragraphs.