How to Open Recently Closed Word Documents
By Laurel Storm
On any given day, you probably work on a dozen different Word documents in the process of running your business. What's more, they're likely saved in several different folders scattered across your hard drive. This can lead to a lot of time wasted in hunting down the exact file you need. You can at least partially remedy this by using Word's list of recent documents to quickly get back to what you were working on.
When Opening Word
Launch Microsoft Word.
Locate the file you want to open in the list on the Word start screen, scrolling if necessary.
Click the file name to open it.
From Within Word
Click "File" and select "Open."
Select "Recent Documents" if it is not already selected.
Locate the file you want to open in the list, scrolling if necessary.
Click the file name to open it. The file opens in a new window, leaving any windows you already had open untouched.
Recent Document List Settings
Click "File" and select "Options."
Click "Advanced."
Click the number corresponding to how many recent documents you want Word to display in the list labeled "Show This Number of Recent Documents." If you want Word not to show any recently opened documents, select zero.
Tips
You can pin documents you use regularly to the list, ensuring they will always appear there. To do this, click the "Pin" icon.
Warnings
Information in this article applies to Word 2013. It may vary slightly or significantly with other versions.
References
Writer Bio
Laurel Storm has been writing since 2001, and helping people with technology for far longer than that. Some of her articles have been published in "Messaggero dei Ragazzi", an Italian magazine for teenagers. She holds a Master of Arts in writing for television and new media from the University of Turin.