Word will not let me resize table column

Question

Word will not let me resize table column

MKel 45

Office 365 Word. Document has existed for multiple years with no issues.

Word recently changed my table properties (cell width) and I am unable to change it back. Changing cell width in table layout will not affect it, I type in new width and it just changes back to what it was.

Overtype mode is off. Numlock key is on (always on). Distribute columns changes but then bounces back. Autofit - Fixed column width makes no difference.

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Answer accepted by question author

John Jefferson Doyon 88,605 Independent Advisor

The longest text does contain hyperlinks without spaces. Up until this change the hyperlinks split at the end of the cell as normal text would. No spaces, no field codes, no embedded objects, no images, and no hidden text Yes, on the copy to new document. But the Ctrl+Q allows me to change the column width. I can't use the Ctrl+spacebar as I have formatting that I want to keep. New table in same document produces the same results. Noticed some other wonky things happening. Will reinstall Word & copy table. Very strange, thought it might be a simple fix but don't want to risk document anymore. Thanks so much for assist.

Thanks for the update.

The fact that Ctrl+Q fixed the column resizing is a strong sign that paragraph formatting inside the table is causing the issue, not the table properties themselves.

The long hyperlinks without spaces could also be contributing, especially if Word is no longer wrapping them correctly.

Since you're seeing other unusual behavior in Word, repairing or reinstalling Microsoft 365 is worth trying. I also recommend keeping a backup of the document before making any changes.

If the issue remains after the repair, copying the content into a brand-new table may be easier than trying to find the exact formatting causing it.

Glad we were able to narrow it down. Thanks for the update.

0 comments

Answer accepted by question author

John Jefferson Doyon 88,605 Independent Advisor

Hi, I'm John! I will help you with this.

If Word is changing the column width back immediately, there may be a table setting, document protection, or a style affecting the table.

Could you check a few things?

Is this happening with only this document or with any new table in a new blank Word document?
If you right-click the table > Table Properties > Table tab, is "Preferred width" checked?
Under Table Properties > Row tab, is "Specify height" enabled?
Under Review, is the document protected or restricted for editing?
Does the issue affect all columns or only one specific column?

Also, if possible, what version of Word are you using? (File > Account > About Word)

MKel 45 Reputation points

2026-06-18T08:58:47.68+00:00

John, Thanks for any assistance.

Only happening with this document.

Preferred width is checked. I have had it checked and unchecked, doesn't seem to make a difference

Preferred height is checked. I have also checked the text wrap, which is enabled.

It looks like the text wrap is unchecked as the column width will change (to a smaller size) if I put hard returns in all the cell text that are long

Table Options / options / automatically resize to fit contents is unchecked.

No restrictions for editing. Document is password protected, has been since creation. Removing password does not enable the columns to be changed.

MS 365 Version 2605 Build 20026.20168
John Jefferson Doyon 88,605 Reputation points Independent Advisor

2026-06-18T18:35:01.3166667+00:00

Thank you for letting me know.

Does the affected column contain any very long text strings without spaces, hyperlinks, field codes, embedded objects, images, or hidden text?

If you copy the entire table and paste it into a brand-new blank document, does the same behavior occur there?

You could also try selecting the entire table, then press Ctrl+Spacebar and Ctrl+Q to remove direct character and paragraph formatting. After that, test whether the column width can be adjusted.

Another useful test is to create a new table in the same document. If the new table resizes normally, that would point to corruption or formatting within the original table rather than a Word application issue.

Let me know the results of those tests, especially whether the problem follows the table when copied to a new document.
MKel 45 Reputation points

2026-06-18T22:17:52.93+00:00

The longest text does contain hyperlinks without spaces. Up until this change the hyperlinks split at the end of the cell as normal text would.

No spaces, no field codes, no embedded objects, no images, and no hidden text

Yes, on the copy to new document. But the Ctrl+Q allows me to change the column width. I can't use the Ctrl+spacebar as I have formatting that I want to keep.

New table in same document produces the same results.

Noticed some other wonky things happening. Will reinstall Word & copy table.

Very strange, thought it might be a simple fix but don't want to risk document anymore. Thanks so much for assist.
Stefan Blom 353.4K Reputation points MVP Volunteer Moderator

2026-06-22T22:52:47.4133333+00:00

Long hyperlinks as well as text with nonbreaking spaces may cause column width issues in Word tables. This might be helpful for future reference. I see that you reported elsewhere in the thread that you found a solution. :-)

3 additional answers

Your answer

MKel 45 Reputation points

2026-06-18T08:58:47.68+00:00

John, Thanks for any assistance.

Only happening with this document.

Preferred width is checked. I have had it checked and unchecked, doesn't seem to make a difference

Preferred height is checked. I have also checked the text wrap, which is enabled.

It looks like the text wrap is unchecked as the column width will change (to a smaller size) if I put hard returns in all the cell text that are long

Table Options / options / automatically resize to fit contents is unchecked.

No restrictions for editing. Document is password protected, has been since creation. Removing password does not enable the columns to be changed.

MS 365 Version 2605 Build 20026.20168
John Jefferson Doyon 88,605 Reputation points Independent Advisor

2026-06-18T18:35:01.3166667+00:00

Thank you for letting me know.

Does the affected column contain any very long text strings without spaces, hyperlinks, field codes, embedded objects, images, or hidden text?

If you copy the entire table and paste it into a brand-new blank document, does the same behavior occur there?

You could also try selecting the entire table, then press Ctrl+Spacebar and Ctrl+Q to remove direct character and paragraph formatting. After that, test whether the column width can be adjusted.

Another useful test is to create a new table in the same document. If the new table resizes normally, that would point to corruption or formatting within the original table rather than a Word application issue.

Let me know the results of those tests, especially whether the problem follows the table when copied to a new document.
MKel 45 Reputation points

2026-06-18T22:17:52.93+00:00

The longest text does contain hyperlinks without spaces. Up until this change the hyperlinks split at the end of the cell as normal text would.

No spaces, no field codes, no embedded objects, no images, and no hidden text

Yes, on the copy to new document. But the Ctrl+Q allows me to change the column width. I can't use the Ctrl+spacebar as I have formatting that I want to keep.

New table in same document produces the same results.

Noticed some other wonky things happening. Will reinstall Word & copy table.

Very strange, thought it might be a simple fix but don't want to risk document anymore. Thanks so much for assist.
Stefan Blom 353.4K Reputation points MVP Volunteer Moderator

2026-06-22T22:52:47.4133333+00:00

Long hyperlinks as well as text with nonbreaking spaces may cause column width issues in Word tables. This might be helpful for future reference. I see that you reported elsewhere in the thread that you found a solution. :-)

Answer 1

Eric Di 5

(User here.) I finally found that upon selecting the whole table, selecting Table Properties (right click), the first menu that appears is the overall table properties. At the top of the menu is a "Preferred Table Width." Apparently this is priority, and overrides any "Preferred Column Width" that I manually tried to set. I was able to uncheck it. From there I was able to recover and rework the columns. However, I cannot recover the time lost with this arbitrary change in Word.

Stefan Blom 353.4K Reputation points MVP Volunteer Moderator

2026-06-22T22:47:05.6433333+00:00

(User here.) I finally found that upon selecting the whole table, selecting Table Properties (right click), the first menu that appears is the overall table properties. At the top of the menu is a "Preferred Table Width." Apparently this is priority, and overrides any "Preferred Column Width" that I manually tried to set. I was able to uncheck it. From there I was able to recover and rework the columns. However, I cannot recover the time lost with this arbitrary change in Word.

Thanks for the follow-up. I'm glad you got it sorted.

The Table Properties dialog box isn't clear on which width settings take priority. It might be worth sending feedback to Microsoft regarding this. For example, you can use Help > Feedback from within Word.

Answer 2

Stefan Blom 353.4K MVP Volunteer Moderator

The table may have become damaged (corrupt). Select the affected table and then convert it to text (Table Layout tab > Convert to Text). You can accept the default suggestion to use tab characters to separate the text (columns). Select the content and convert it back to a table (Insert tab > Table > Convert Text to Table). Does that fix the problem?

MKel 45 Reputation points

2026-06-19T02:21:02.03+00:00

Yes, I do believe table is corrupt and/or word itself as I noticed other anomalies and the problems just appeared after being correctly formatted forever.

Answer 3

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