Select text in Pages on iPad
You select text to change its formatting, move it, copy it, and more. You can select any amount of text—from characters, to words, to paragraphs—and the text can be contiguous or noncontiguous (nonadjacent). Selecting noncontiguous text makes it easy to perform the same action on specific text selections throughout a document.
Before you can select text in a text box, shape, table cell, title or caption text field, or header or footer text field, you first need to place the insertion point inside the object or text field. The insertion point is the blinking vertical line that indicates where the text you type appears.
Place the insertion point
You place the insertion point to indicate where you want to start typing or selecting text.
Note: If you’re working in a blank page layout document, you need to add a text box, shape, or table to the page before you can place the insertion point.
While viewing a document in editing view, do one of the following:
Place the insertion point: Double-tap the object or field. If it contains text, a word is selected; tap again where you want to place the insertion point.
Reposition the insertion point: Drag the insertion point to where you want it. You can also drag two fingers over the keyboard, then lift your fingers when the insertion point is where you want it.
Note: You can’t place an insertion point in placeholder text. When you double-tap placeholder text, the insertion point replaces the placeholder text.
Select text
To select text, do any of the following:
Select a word: Double-tap it.
Select a paragraph: Triple-tap in the paragraph.
Select a range of text: Double-tap a word, then move the drag points to include more or less text. Drag beyond the end of the paragraph to include any formatting marks (called invisibles).
Select noncontiguous text: Press and hold the Command key on a connected keyboard while selecting two or more nonadjacent words or ranges of text using a trackpad or mouse.
To deselect a portion of any noncontiguous selections, press and hold the Command key, then select the text you want to exclude.
Tip: You can also drag two fingers across the onscreen keyboard to move the insertion point, then tap once with two fingers on the keyboard to select a word, twice to select a sentence, or three times to select a paragraph.
You can select a range of continuous text or multiple noncontiguous selections only within the same area of your document—for example, within the document body, or within a single text box, shape, or table cell.
To deselect all text selections, tap anywhere on the page outside a selection.