Editing · original practice scenario
Delete complete worksheet columns
Column D is a temporary helper column in a disposable copy of a report.
Start here: Whole worksheet columns selected through their headers
Deletion changes the worksheet structure and may change formula references. Use Undo if the wrong header was selected.
Follow these instructions in your own desktop Excel workbook. This page explains the operation; it does not send commands to Excel.
Mac keys and context
Delete cells removes the selected structure, unlike the Delete key that clears cell contents. Select complete headers first.
Ctrl+-
Windows and Mac / Delete cells; whole-row or whole-column preselection. Microsoft reference ↗
Walk through the operation
- Click the column D header to select it completely.
- Use the listed deletion combination.
Instruction 1 of 2: Click the column D header to select it completely.
Expected result: The entire column is removed and the columns to its right move left.
Recall the keys
Which listed Mac combination or sequence starts this operation in the context above?
Related walkthroughs
- Abandon the current edit
- Select one character right while editing
- Select one character left while editing
- Insert complete worksheet rows
Catalog updated 2026-10-18. US keyboard notation: + joins held keys; commas separate successive presses. Function keys may require Fn. Desktop instructions are separate from this browser's own keyboard shortcuts.