Why does Ctrl + Alt + V not work in Word anymore?
Ctrl Alt V in Word Ctrl Alt V in Word If you need Paste Special, use: Alt → H → V → S This is the only path that has stayed stable through recent changes. It goes through the ribbon, not the keyboard shortcut layer. What changed Historically: Ctrl + Alt + V → Paste Special This worked consistently in older Word versions (at least Word 2007–2013 era). 0 That is no longer reliable in current Microsoft 365 builds. Because the shortcut layer was modified. The actual change Microsoft introduced new shortcuts around 2024–2025 tied to paste behavior and formatting. As part of that: Ctrl + Shift + V → paste plain text Ctrl + Alt + C → copy formatting Ctrl + Alt + V → paste formatting So Ctrl + Alt + V is no longer exclusively associated with Paste Special in newer builds. 1 At the same time, Microsoft explicitly documents the ribbon sequence as the way to access Paste Special. 2 Side effect In some versions: ...