Office Settings & Configuration

How to Make PowerPoint Text Turn Gray After Animation

WPS Content Manager Sep 28, 2026 869 views

Question details

The user wants to make presentation text turn gray after an animation finishes playing.

How to Make PowerPoint Text Turn Gray After Animation

Product: PowerPoint
Device & OS: not provided
Scenario: Applying post-animation effects to text, particularly on slides with light backgrounds.
Observed behavior: The default Fade Effect option makes the text appear highlighted rather than changing its color to gray on light backgrounds.

Before you start

Determine whether your presentation design requires a light or dark background, as the built-in fade animation interacts differently with various slide theme colors.

Solution 1Recommended

Change to a Dark Slide Background

Use a dark slide background so the default faded text naturally blends into the slide, avoiding the unwanted highlight-like appearance.

PowerPoint's Fade Effect option works by lowering the opacity of the text. On a light background, this creates a highlighting illusion. Using a darker background allows the transparency to mimic a true gray color.

Open Background Settings

Right-click on an empty area of your presentation slide and select 'Format Background' from the context menu.

Select a Dark Color

In the Format Background pane on the right side of the screen, choose a dark color (such as black or dark gray) under the Fill options.

Apply Fade Effect

Apply your desired animation to the text and select the post-animation fade option. The text will now smoothly dim into the dark background as expected.

Solution 2

Use Duplicate Slides for Precise Color Control

If you must use a light background, duplicating the slide and manually changing the text color offers exact control over the gray appearance.

Powerful Presentation Software

Easily Manage Text Animations and Effects with WPS Office

WPS Presentation provides intuitive controls for custom animations, allowing you to easily dim text or change it to a precise gray color after it appears, regardless of your slide's background color.

1. Select Your Text: Open your presentation in WPS Office and highlight the text box or bullet points you wish to animate.
2. Add Custom Animation: Navigate to the 'Animation' tab on the top ribbon and click on 'Custom Animation' to open the task pane on the right.
3. Set an Entrance Effect: Click 'Add Effect' in the task pane to apply your preferred entrance animation to the selected text.
4. Configure After Animation Color: Right-click the newly added animation item in the pane, select 'Effect Options', and choose a gray color from the 'After animation' dropdown menu.

Precise 'After Animation' effects to effortlessly dim or change text colors.Fully compatible with Microsoft PowerPoint (.ppt, .pptx) formats and animations.Rich library of built-in templates with professionally designed dark backgrounds.Lightweight, free to use, and features a familiar user interface for seamless migration.

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Frequently Asked Questions

Why does my text look highlighted instead of gray after fading?

This is the expected behavior of the built-in Fade Effect on light backgrounds. The effect lowers the text's opacity, which interacts with the bright background color to create a highlighting illusion rather than rendering a solid gray color.

Can I use the 'Font Color' emphasis animation to turn text gray?

Yes. Instead of relying on post-animation fade effects, you can apply a 'Font Color' emphasis animation to your text and manually set the target color to gray. This forces the text to change to a specific color regardless of the slide's background.

How do I dim previous bullet points one by one as I speak?

Apply an entrance effect to your entire bulleted list. Right-click the animation in the task pane, select 'Effect Options', and pick a gray color in the 'After animation' dropdown. Finally, go to the 'Text Animation' tab and ensure it is set to group text 'By 1st level paragraphs'.

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