How to Find and Highlight Words in Adobe Acrobat Pro XI
Question details
The user wants to locate every occurrence of a specific word or phrase in a PDF document and highlight all the matches for easier review.
- Product
- Adobe Acrobat Pro XI / Acrobat DC
- Device & OS
- not provided
- Scenario
- Reviewing a large PDF document where specific terms or keywords need to be visually emphasized with color highlighting.
- Observed behavior
- The user needs to find a way to search for terms and efficiently apply text highlighting to the resulting matches, either manually or via batch processing.
Ensure your PDF document is text-searchable. If you are working with a scanned document, you must run Optical Character Recognition (OCR) first so the software can detect the text.
Use the Built-in Search and Highlight Tools
Use the standard Find tool to locate your target words, then manually apply the highlight tool to each result.
This method is ideal for shorter documents or when you only need to highlight a few instances of a specific word.
Launch Adobe Acrobat and open your PDF. Press 'Ctrl + F' (Windows) or 'Cmd + F' (Mac) to open the Find toolbar in the upper right corner.
Type the word or phrase you want to locate into the search box and press 'Enter' to jump to the first occurrence.
Click on the 'Highlight text' icon located in the Comment toolbar or the Quick Tools menu at the top.
Drag your cursor over the found text to highlight it. Click 'Next' in the Find toolbar to move to the next instance and repeat the highlighting process.
Batch Highlight Using an Action Exchange Script
For advanced or batch highlighting of multiple words automatically, use a custom Action script from the Acrobat user community.
Easily Find and Highlight Text with WPS PDF
If you are looking for an intuitive and fast way to search and annotate your documents, WPS Office includes a powerful PDF editor. It simplifies the process of finding words, adding highlights, and collaborating on PDF files.
- 1. Open your PDF in WPS Office: Launch WPS Office and open your target PDF file within the WPS PDF tool.
- 2. Search for the Text: Press 'Ctrl + F' to open the search bar. Enter your desired keyword to find all matches within the document.
- 3. Activate the Highlight Tool: Navigate to the 'Comment' tab on the top ribbon and click the 'Highlight' button. You can also customize your preferred highlight color here.
- 4. Apply Highlights: Select the text found by your search to instantly apply the highlight color.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why can't I search for words in my PDF?
If the search tool finds no results but you can clearly see the words, your PDF is likely a scanned image. You must use an OCR (Optical Character Recognition) tool to convert the image text into searchable and selectable text before you can find and highlight it.
How do I change the highlight color in Acrobat?
Right-click on text that you have already highlighted and select 'Properties'. In the Appearance tab, select a new color from the palette. To use this color for future highlights, check the 'Make Properties Default' box before clicking OK.
Can I search for multiple different words at the exact same time?
The standard Advanced Search tool in Acrobat allows you to search for exact phrases or any of the words, but it does not automatically highlight all distinct terms in one click. To accomplish this, you need to use a third-party plugin or an Action script like the Find, Highlight, and Extract Words tool.
How do I remove highlights from a PDF document?
To remove a highlight, simply right-click (or Control-click on Mac) directly on the highlighted text and select 'Delete' from the context menu. The color will be removed while keeping the underlying text intact.
