How to Copy and Paste on MacBook Pro?

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How to Copy and Paste on MacBook Pro

If you’ve just acquired a new MacBook Pro or have transitioned from a Windows OS desktop or laptop, mastering the simplest tasks, such as copying and pasting, may initially seem challenging.

How to Copy and Paste on MacBook Pro using Keyboard Shortcuts

Begin by selecting the text and/or image you wish to copy. Achieve this by pressing and holding the Shift button using the up and down arrows to highlight your desired text. Alternatively, you can left-click with your mouse and drag over the text to highlight it.
Press ‘Command + C‘ on your keyboard; while holding down the ‘Command‘ button, press the ‘C‘ key once to copy the selected text or image to the clipboard.
Open an application where you want to paste the copied content. The MacBooks’ TextEdit application is ideal for pasting and saving both images and text.
Press ‘Command + V‘ to paste the text and/or images from the clipboard to your application.
Note: The clipboard can hold only one set of copied text and/or images at a time; thus, any new copy action will replace the previously copied content.

Using Your Mouse

Highlight the text or image you wish to copy.
Right-click with your mouse and select ‘Copy‘ from the context menu that appears.
Open an application to paste the copied content.
Position your cursor where you want to insert the copied content.
Right-click again and choose ‘Paste‘ from the context menu to paste your content.

Using the Trackpad

If you own a MacBook Pro and do not have an Apple Magic Mouse or a standard mouse, you can still copy and paste using the touchpad or trackpad.

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Here are the steps to follow:

You can select the text and/or images you wish to copy by pressing on the touchpad and dragging the cursor over the desired section.
Click on the touchpad with two fingers to open the context menu.
Choose ‘Copy‘ from the menu.
Open an application to paste the copied content.
To paste, lightly tap the touchpad with two fingers in the desired location to open the context menu, then select ‘Paste‘.

Using the Toolbar

Begin by highlighting the text you wish to copy using a mouse or the touchpad.
Select ‘Edit’ and then ‘Copy‘ from the dropdown menu in the toolbar.
Move the cursor to where you wish to paste the copied content.
Choose ‘Edit’ and then ‘Paste‘ from the dropdown menu in the toolbar to paste your content.

How to Copy And Paste On MacBook Pro to Match Formatting

The methods described above will copy the highlighted text in the original document, including color, font, size, etc. However, if you prefer the pasted content to match the formatting of the destination document, there is a simple solution.

Follow these steps:

Highlight the text you want to copy using either a mouse or touchpad.
Copy the text using ‘Command + C‘ or right-clicking with your mouse.
Position the cursor where you want to paste the copied content.
Select ‘Edit‘ and then choose ‘Paste without Formatting‘ or ‘Paste and Match Style‘ from the dropdown menu in the toolbar. This action will paste the content, adapting it to match the style of the document you are pasting into.

Final Thought

Copying and pasting are some of the most straightforward computer features that everyone should know.

TechnoWifi

5 Methods to Copy and Paste on MacBook Pro