Change the background color(s) in cells or tables

Change the background color of one or more cells

1. Select the cell or cells for which you want to change the background color. For a single cell, you can omit this step and simply click in the cell.

2. Right-click within the selection and choose Properties > Table.

3. On the Background tab, in the Cell Background Color section, clear the Transparent check box.

4. You can now set a background color that will apply to just the current cells.

Change the background color of a table

1. Right-click within the table and choose Properties > Table.

2. On the Background tab, in the Table Background Color section, clear the Transparent check box.

3. You can now set a background color that will apply to the entire table.

Related Topics

Overview

Notes

• You can also choose Table > Background to set background colors.

• When cells or tables are transparent, it means they have no color of their own. The page area or image behind the cells "shows through" them. You must turn transparency off in order to set background colors.

• You can choose colors and transparency settings for both the table and the selected cells at the same time. Wherever they differ, the cell-level settings prevail. The background of each cell affects only the inside of the cell. The background of the table affects not only the insides of cells that do not have their own individual colors, but also the spaces between cells (front faces of table borders), when those are visible. If you use highlighting and shadow colors, make sure they go with the table background color you've chosen.