Fix PDF Text Appearing Selected or Gray After Acrobat Pro Conversion
Question details
Users are experiencing an issue where text in a PDF, or in a Word file exported from that PDF, appears as though it is selected or permanently highlighted with a gray background after being converted from an SDL-generated document.
- Product
- Adobe Acrobat Pro
- Device & OS
- not provided
- Scenario
- Converting an SDL-generated document to PDF and viewing it, or exporting the resulting PDF to a Microsoft Word format.
- Observed behavior
- The text displays with a continuous gray background or highlight, mimicking the appearance of selected text, which persists in both the PDF viewer and the exported Word file.
Before attempting any fixes, try printing a single page of the affected PDF or opening the file in a different PDF reader (such as your web browser) to determine if the gray highlighting is merely a visual rendering glitch in Acrobat or permanently embedded in the file's formatting.
Diagnose the Display vs. Conversion Issue
Determine if the gray text is a rendering anomaly specific to your current PDF viewer or a hardcoded formatting error from the document conversion.
Often, conversion tools generating PDFs from specialized software (like SDL) create text layers that specific PDF viewers interpret as form fields or active selections. Testing the file across different mediums helps isolate the root cause.
Open the affected PDF in a completely different PDF viewer, such as Google Chrome, Microsoft Edge, or WPS Office. Observe if the text still appears gray.
Print a single test page directly from Adobe Acrobat Pro. If the printed page does not have a gray background behind the text, the issue is purely a screen-rendering glitch in the software.
If the gray background persists across other viewers and on the printed page, return to the original SDL-generated document. Check for background shading, character highlights, or field settings that may have been carried over during the initial conversion.
Disable Form Field Highlighting in Acrobat
Turn off Acrobat's default field highlighting feature, which sometimes misinterprets converted text layers as fillable forms and applies a gray overlay.
Convert PDFs to Word Flawlessly with WPS Office
Avoid annoying gray highlights and rendering glitches by using WPS Office for your PDF reading and conversion needs. WPS PDF provides a clean, accurate conversion engine that seamlessly turns PDFs into editable Word documents while preserving the original layout and stripping out visual artifacts.
- 1. Open the PDF in WPS: Launch WPS Office and click on 'PDF' to access the WPS PDF tool. Open your affected PDF file to check if it displays cleanly.
- 2. Access the conversion tool: Navigate to the 'Tools' tab on the top ribbon and select 'PDF to Word'.
- 3. Set conversion preferences: Choose your desired page range, select the output location on your computer, and ensure the format is set to .docx.
- 4. Convert the file: Click 'Start' to begin the conversion process. The engine will accurately process the text without carrying over glitchy gray backgrounds.
- 5. Edit the clean document: Open the newly created Word document in WPS Writer. Your text will be fully editable and free of unwanted shading.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why does my PDF text look highlighted in gray when I open it?
This is often caused by how your PDF viewer renders form fields or converted text layers, especially in documents exported from specialized software like SDL. It is typically a visual glitch in the PDF software rather than actual background coloring applied to the text.
How do I remove the gray background from text in a Word file exported from a PDF?
If the gray background carries over to Word, highlight the affected text, go to the Home tab, find the 'Shading' tool (the paint bucket icon) or 'Text Highlight Color' tool, and set it to 'No Color'. Alternatively, check if the text is trapped inside a gray-shaded text box and change the shape fill to transparent.
Does the gray text highlight show up when printing?
Usually, if it is a selection or rendering glitch in Acrobat Pro, it will not appear on the printed page. It is highly recommended to print a test page to confirm whether the background is physically embedded in the document's formatting or just a screen display error.
