How to Keep the Highlight Tool Selected in Adobe Acrobat Reader
Question details
The user wants to lock the highlight tool to remain continuously active, allowing them to highlight multiple text passages without re-selecting the tool after every use.
- Product
- Adobe Acrobat Reader
- Device & OS
- Mac
- Scenario
- Highlighting multiple separate passages in a PDF document continuously.
- Observed behavior
- The highlight tool deselects automatically after a single use, forcing the user to select the tool repeatedly for each new passage.
Ensure you have the Comment toolbar visible in Adobe Acrobat Reader so you can easily access and customize your annotation tools.
Enable 'Keep Tool Selected' via the Pushpin Icon
This is the standard and most direct method to lock your highlight tool for continuous text annotation.
Open your PDF in Adobe Acrobat Reader and navigate to the Comment toolbar on the right side of the screen.
Click on the Highlight text icon (the marker symbol) to activate it for your first passage.
Look for the pushpin icon in the annotation toolbar. Click it to enable the 'Keep Tool Selected' mode. The highlight tool will now remain active until you manually deselect it.
Customize the Toolbar if the Pushpin is Hidden
If the pushpin icon is not visible on your toolbar, you can customize your Quick Tools to add it back.
Highlight PDFs Continuously with WPS Office
If you are struggling with complex menus in other PDF readers, WPS Office offers a built-in, lightweight PDF editor that makes continuous highlighting intuitive and completely hassle-free on your Mac.
- 1. Install WPS Office: Download and install WPS Office for free on your Mac.
- 2. Open Your PDF: Launch WPS Office and open your PDF document using the built-in WPS PDF tool.
- 3. Navigate to the Comment Tab: Click on the 'Comment' tab located at the top ribbon menu to reveal annotation tools.
- 4. Select the Highlight Tool: Click the 'Highlight' icon. By default, WPS PDF allows you to continuously highlight multiple passages without needing to search for hidden pushpin settings.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why does my highlight tool keep deselecting automatically?
By default, Adobe Acrobat is set to revert to the standard Selection tool (the cursor) after a single annotation is made. This is designed to prevent accidental highlights. You must manually enable the 'Keep Tool Selected' feature (the pushpin icon) to override this behavior.
Does the pushpin icon work for other tools besides highlighting?
Yes. The 'Keep Tool Selected' pushpin icon works for most annotation tools in Adobe Acrobat, including the underline, strikethrough, shape, and sticky note tools, allowing you to use them repeatedly.
How do I access tool properties using a keyboard shortcut?
On a Mac, you can press Command+E to open the Tool Properties bar for whichever tool you currently have selected. On a Windows PC, the shortcut is Ctrl+E.
How do I turn off continuous highlighting once I am finished?
To stop highlighting and return to the normal selection cursor, simply click the Selection tool (arrow icon) in your toolbar, click the pushpin icon again to toggle it off, or press the 'Esc' key on your keyboard.
