Class Paragraph

  • Several methods are available to manipulate elements within a Google Document using Apps Script, including replacing text, setting alignment, and adjusting spacing.

  • Methods likereplaceText use regular expressions with limitations based on Google's RE2 library.

  • Various methods allow setting paragraph attributes, heading styles, indentations, and line spacing.

  • Authorization with specific scopes, such ashttps://www.googleapis.com/auth/documents.currentonly orhttps://www.googleapis.com/auth/documents, is required to use these methods.

  • You can set the entire text content of a paragraph using thesetText method, which replaces existing content.

Paragraph

An element representing a paragraph. AParagraph may containEquation,Footnote,HorizontalRule,InlineDrawing,InlineImage,PageBreak,andText elements. For more information on document structure, see theguide to extending Google Docs.

Paragraphs may not contain new-line characters. New-line characters ("\n") areconverted to line-break characters ("\r").

constbody=DocumentApp.getActiveDocument().getActiveTab().asDocumentTab().getBody();// Append a tab header paragraph.constheader=body.appendParagraph('A Document');header.setHeading(DocumentApp.ParagraphHeading.HEADING1);// Append a section header paragraph.constsection=body.appendParagraph('Section 1');section.setHeading(DocumentApp.ParagraphHeading.HEADING2);// Append a regular paragraph.body.appendParagraph('This is a typical paragraph.');

Methods

MethodReturn typeBrief description
addPositionedImage(image)PositionedImageCreates and inserts a newPositionedImage from the specified image blob.
appendHorizontalRule()HorizontalRuleCreates and appends a newHorizontalRule.
appendInlineImage(image)InlineImageCreates and appends a newInlineImage from the specified image blob.
appendInlineImage(image)InlineImageAppends the givenInlineImage.
appendPageBreak()PageBreakCreates and appends a newPageBreak.
appendPageBreak(pageBreak)PageBreakAppends the givenPageBreak.
appendText(text)TextCreates and appends a newText element with the specified contents.
appendText(text)TextAppends the givenText element.
clear()ParagraphClears the contents of the element.
copy()ParagraphReturns a detached, deep copy of the current element.
editAsText()TextObtains aText version of the current element, for editing.
findElement(elementType)RangeElement|nullSearches the contents of the element for a descendant of the specified type.
findElement(elementType, from)RangeElement|nullSearches the contents of the element for a descendant of the specified type, starting from thespecifiedRangeElement.
findText(searchPattern)RangeElement|nullSearches the contents of the element for the specified text pattern using regular expressions.
findText(searchPattern, from)RangeElement|nullSearches the contents of the element for the specified text pattern, starting from a givensearch result.
getAlignment()HorizontalAlignment|nullRetrieves theHorizontalAlignment.
getAttributes()ObjectRetrieves the element's attributes.
getChild(childIndex)ElementRetrieves the child element at the specified child index.
getChildIndex(child)IntegerRetrieves the child index for the specified child element.
getHeading()ParagraphHeading|nullRetrieves theParagraphHeading.
getIndentEnd()Number|nullRetrieves the end indentation, in points.
getIndentFirstLine()Number|nullRetrieves the first line indentation, in points.
getIndentStart()Number|nullRetrieves the start indentation.
getLineSpacing()Number|nullRetrieves the line spacing, in points.
getLinkUrl()String|nullRetrieves the link url.
getNextSibling()Element|nullRetrieves the element's next sibling element.
getNumChildren()IntegerRetrieves the number of children.
getParent()ContainerElement|nullRetrieves the element's parent element.
getPositionedImage(id)PositionedImageGets aPositionedImage by the image's ID.
getPositionedImages()PositionedImage[]Gets allPositionedImage objects anchored to the paragraph.
getPreviousSibling()Element|nullRetrieves the element's previous sibling element.
getSpacingAfter()Number|nullRetrieves the spacing after the element, in points.
getSpacingBefore()Number|nullRetrieves the spacing before the element, in points.
getText()StringRetrieves the contents of the element as a text string.
getTextAlignment()TextAlignment|nullGets the text alignment.
getType()ElementTypeRetrieves the element'sElementType.
insertHorizontalRule(childIndex)HorizontalRuleCreates and inserts aHorizontalRule at the specified index.
insertInlineImage(childIndex, image)InlineImageCreates and inserts a newInlineImage from the specified image blob, at the specifiedindex.
insertInlineImage(childIndex, image)InlineImageInserts the givenInlineImage at the specified index.
insertPageBreak(childIndex)PageBreakCreates and inserts a newPageBreak at the specified index.
insertPageBreak(childIndex, pageBreak)PageBreakInserts the givenPageBreak at the specified index.
insertText(childIndex, text)TextCreates and inserts a new text element at the specified index.
insertText(childIndex, text)TextInserts the givenText element at the specified index, with the specified textcontents.
isAtDocumentEnd()BooleanDetermines whether the element is at the end of theDocument.
isLeftToRight()Boolean|nullRetrieves the left-to-right setting.
merge()Paragraph|nullMerges the element with the preceding sibling of the same type.
removeChild(child)ParagraphRemoves the specified child element.
removeFromParent()Paragraph|nullRemoves the element from its parent.
removePositionedImage(id)BooleanRemoves aPositionedImage by the image's ID.
replaceText(searchPattern, replacement)ElementReplaces all occurrences of a given text pattern with a given replacement string, using regularexpressions.
setAlignment(alignment)ParagraphSets theHorizontalAlignment.
setAttributes(attributes)ParagraphSets the element's attributes.
setHeading(heading)ParagraphSets theParagraphHeading.
setIndentEnd(indentEnd)ParagraphSets the end indentation, in points.
setIndentFirstLine(indentFirstLine)ParagraphSets the first line indentation, in points.
setIndentStart(indentStart)ParagraphSets the start indentation, in points.
setLeftToRight(leftToRight)ParagraphSets the left-to-right setting.
setLineSpacing(multiplier)ParagraphSets the line spacing, as a quantity indicating the number of lines to use for spacing.
setLinkUrl(url)ParagraphSets the link url.
setSpacingAfter(spacingAfter)ParagraphSets the spacing after the element, in points.
setSpacingBefore(spacingBefore)ParagraphSets the spacing before the element, in points.
setText(text)voidSets the contents of the paragraph as text.
setTextAlignment(textAlignment)ParagraphSets the text alignment.

Detailed documentation

addPositionedImage(image)

Creates and inserts a newPositionedImage from the specified image blob.

// Opens the Docs file by its ID. If you created your script from within// a Google Docs file, you can use DocumentApp.getActiveDocument() instead.// TODO(developer): Replace the ID with your own.constdoc=DocumentApp.openById('123abc');// Gets the body contents of the tab by its ID.// TODO(developer): Replace the ID with your own.constbody=doc.getTab('123abc').asDocumentTab().getBody();// Gets the first paragraph from the body.constparagraph=body.getParagraphs()[0];// Fetches the specified image URL.constimage=UrlFetchApp.fetch('https://fonts.gstatic.com/s/i/productlogos/apps_script/v10/web-24dp/logo_apps_script_color_1x_web_24dp.png',);// Adds the image to the tab, anchored to the first paragraph.paragraph.addPositionedImage(image);

Parameters

NameTypeDescription
imageBlobSourceThe image data.

Return

PositionedImage — The new positioned image.

Authorization

Scripts that use this method require authorization with one or more of the followingscopes:

  • https://www.googleapis.com/auth/documents.currentonly
  • https://www.googleapis.com/auth/documents

appendHorizontalRule()

Creates and appends a newHorizontalRule.

// Opens the Docs file by its ID. If you created your script from within// a Google Docs file, you can use DocumentApp.getActiveDocument() instead.// TODO(developer): Replace the ID with your own.constdoc=DocumentApp.openById('123abc');// Gets the body contents of the tab by its ID.// TODO(developer): Replace the ID with your own.constbody=doc.getTab('123abc').asDocumentTab().getBody();// Gets the first paragraph from the body.constparagraph=body.getParagraphs()[0];// Adds a horizontal line under the first paragraph.paragraph.appendHorizontalRule();

Return

HorizontalRule — The new horizontal rule.

Authorization

Scripts that use this method require authorization with one or more of the followingscopes:

  • https://www.googleapis.com/auth/documents.currentonly
  • https://www.googleapis.com/auth/documents

appendInlineImage(image)

Creates and appends a newInlineImage from the specified image blob.

// Opens the Docs file by its ID. If you created your script from within// a Google Docs file, you can use DocumentApp.getActiveDocument() instead.// TODO(developer): Replace the ID with your own.constdoc=DocumentApp.openById('123abc');// Gets the body contents of the tab by its ID.// TODO(developer): Replace the ID with your own.constbody=doc.getTab('123abc').asDocumentTab().getBody();// Gets the first paragraph from the body.constparagraph=body.getParagraphs()[0];// Fetches the image from the specified image URL.constimage=UrlFetchApp.fetch('https://fonts.gstatic.com/s/i/productlogos/apps_script/v10/web-96dp/logo_apps_script_color_1x_web_96dp.png',);// Adds the image to the first paragraph.paragraph.appendInlineImage(image);

Parameters

NameTypeDescription
imageBlobSourceThe image data.

Return

InlineImage — The appended image.

Authorization

Scripts that use this method require authorization with one or more of the followingscopes:

  • https://www.googleapis.com/auth/documents.currentonly
  • https://www.googleapis.com/auth/documents

appendInlineImage(image)

Appends the givenInlineImage.

// Opens the Docs file by its ID. If you created your script from within// a Google Docs file, you can use DocumentApp.getActiveDocument() instead.// TODO(developer): Replace the ID with your own.constdoc=DocumentApp.openById('123abc');// Gets the body contents of the tab by its ID.// TODO(developer): Replace the ID with your own.constbody=doc.getTab('123abc').asDocumentTab().getBody();// Gets the first paragraph from the body.constparagraph=body.getParagraphs()[0];// Makes a copy of the first image in the body.constimage=body.getImages()[0].copy();// Adds the image to the first paragraph.paragraph.appendInlineImage(image);

Parameters

NameTypeDescription
imageInlineImageThe image data.

Return

InlineImage — The appended image.

Authorization

Scripts that use this method require authorization with one or more of the followingscopes:

  • https://www.googleapis.com/auth/documents.currentonly
  • https://www.googleapis.com/auth/documents

appendPageBreak()

Creates and appends a newPageBreak.

Note:PageBreaks may not be contained withinTableCells.If the current element is contained in a table cell, an exception will be thrown.

// Opens the Docs file by its ID. If you created your script from within// a Google Docs file, you can use DocumentApp.getActiveDocument() instead.// TODO(developer): Replace the ID with your own.constdoc=DocumentApp.openById('123abc');// Gets the body contents of the tab by its ID.// TODO(developer): Replace the ID with your own.constbody=doc.getTab('123abc').asDocumentTab().getBody();// Gets the first paragraph from the body.constparagraph=body.getParagraphs()[0];// Adds a page break after the first paragraph.paragraph.appendPageBreak();

Return

PageBreak — The new page break element.

Authorization

Scripts that use this method require authorization with one or more of the followingscopes:

  • https://www.googleapis.com/auth/documents.currentonly
  • https://www.googleapis.com/auth/documents

appendPageBreak(pageBreak)

Appends the givenPageBreak.

Note:PageBreaks can't be contained withinTableCells.If the current element exists in a table cell, the script throws an exception.

// Opens the Docs file by its ID. If you created your script from within// a Google Docs file, you can use DocumentApp.getActiveDocument() instead.// TODO(developer): Replace the ID with your own.constdoc=DocumentApp.openById('123abc');// Gets the body contents of the tab by its ID.// TODO(developer): Replace the ID with your own.constbody=doc.getTab('123abc').asDocumentTab().getBody();// Gets the first paragraph from the body.constparagraph=body.getParagraphs()[0];// Adds a page break after the first paragraph.constpageBreak=paragraph.appendPageBreak();// Makes a copy of the page break.constnewPageBreak=pageBreak.copy();// Adds the copied page break to the paragraph.paragraph.appendPageBreak(newPageBreak);

Parameters

NameTypeDescription
pageBreakPageBreakThe page break to append.

Return

PageBreak — The appended page break element.

Authorization

Scripts that use this method require authorization with one or more of the followingscopes:

  • https://www.googleapis.com/auth/documents.currentonly
  • https://www.googleapis.com/auth/documents

appendText(text)

Creates and appends a newText element with the specified contents.

// Opens the Docs file by its ID. If you created your script from within// a Google Docs file, you can use DocumentApp.getActiveDocument() instead.// TODO(developer): Replace the ID with your own.constdoc=DocumentApp.openById('123abc');// Gets the body contents of the tab by its ID.// TODO(developer): Replace the ID with your own.constbody=doc.getTab('123abc').asDocumentTab().getBody();// Gets the first paragraph from the body.constparagraph=body.getParagraphs()[0];// Adds a string to the paragraph.paragraph.appendText('This is a new sentence.');

Parameters

NameTypeDescription
textStringThe text contents.

Return

Text — The new text element.

Authorization

Scripts that use this method require authorization with one or more of the followingscopes:

  • https://www.googleapis.com/auth/documents.currentonly
  • https://www.googleapis.com/auth/documents

appendText(text)

Appends the givenText element.

// Opens the Docs file by its ID. If you created your script from within// a Google Docs file, you can use DocumentApp.getActiveDocument() instead.// TODO(developer): Replace the ID with your own.constdoc=DocumentApp.openById('123abc');// Gets the body contents of the tab by its ID.// TODO(developer): Replace the ID with your own.constbody=doc.getTab('123abc').asDocumentTab().getBody();// Gets the text from the first paragraph in the body.constparagraph1=body.getParagraphs()[0];consttext=paragraph1.getText();// Gets the third paragraph in the body.constparagraph3=body.getParagraphs()[2];// Adds the text from the first paragraph to the third paragraph.paragraph3.appendText(text);

Parameters

NameTypeDescription
textTextThe text element to append.

Return

Text — The appended text element.

Authorization

Scripts that use this method require authorization with one or more of the followingscopes:

  • https://www.googleapis.com/auth/documents.currentonly
  • https://www.googleapis.com/auth/documents

clear()

Clears the contents of the element.

Return

Paragraph — The current element.


copy()

Returns a detached, deep copy of the current element.

Any child elements present in the element are also copied. The new element doesn't have aparent.

Return

Paragraph — The new copy.

Authorization

Scripts that use this method require authorization with one or more of the followingscopes:

  • https://www.googleapis.com/auth/documents.currentonly
  • https://www.googleapis.com/auth/documents

editAsText()

Obtains aText version of the current element, for editing.

UseeditAsText for manipulating the elements contents as rich text. TheeditAsText mode ignores non-text elements (such asInlineImage andHorizontalRule).

Child elements fully contained within a deleted text range are removed from the element.

constbody=DocumentApp.getActiveDocument().getActiveTab().asDocumentTab().getBody();// Insert two paragraphs separated by a paragraph containing an// horizontal rule.body.insertParagraph(0,'An editAsText sample.');body.insertHorizontalRule(0);body.insertParagraph(0,'An example.');// Delete " sample.\n\n An" removing the horizontal rule in the process.body.editAsText().deleteText(14,25);

Return

Text — a text version of the current element


findElement(elementType)

Searches the contents of the element for a descendant of the specified type.

Parameters

NameTypeDescription
elementTypeElementTypeThe type of element to search for.

Return

RangeElement|null — A search result indicating the position of the search element.

Authorization

Scripts that use this method require authorization with one or more of the followingscopes:

  • https://www.googleapis.com/auth/documents.currentonly
  • https://www.googleapis.com/auth/documents

findElement(elementType, from)

Searches the contents of the element for a descendant of the specified type, starting from thespecifiedRangeElement.

constbody=DocumentApp.getActiveDocument().getActiveTab().asDocumentTab().getBody();// Define the search parameters.letsearchResult=null;// Search until the paragraph is found.while((searchResult=body.findElement(DocumentApp.ElementType.PARAGRAPH,searchResult,))){constpar=searchResult.getElement().asParagraph();if(par.getHeading()===DocumentApp.ParagraphHeading.HEADING1){// Found one, update and stop.par.setText('This is the first header.');break;}}

Parameters

NameTypeDescription
elementTypeElementTypeThe type of element to search for.
fromRangeElementThe search result to search from.

Return

RangeElement|null — A search result indicating the next position of the search element.

Authorization

Scripts that use this method require authorization with one or more of the followingscopes:

  • https://www.googleapis.com/auth/documents.currentonly
  • https://www.googleapis.com/auth/documents

findText(searchPattern)

Searches the contents of the element for the specified text pattern using regular expressions.

A subset of the JavaScript regular expression features are not fully supported, such ascapture groups and mode modifiers.

The provided regular expression pattern is independently matched against each text blockcontained in the current element.

Parameters

NameTypeDescription
searchPatternStringthe pattern to search for

Return

RangeElement|null — a search result indicating the position of the search text, or null if there is no match

Authorization

Scripts that use this method require authorization with one or more of the followingscopes:

  • https://www.googleapis.com/auth/documents.currentonly
  • https://www.googleapis.com/auth/documents

findText(searchPattern, from)

Searches the contents of the element for the specified text pattern, starting from a givensearch result.

A subset of the JavaScript regular expression features are not fully supported, such ascapture groups and mode modifiers.

The provided regular expression pattern is independently matched against each text blockcontained in the current element.

Parameters

NameTypeDescription
searchPatternStringthe pattern to search for
fromRangeElementthe search result to search from

Return

RangeElement|null — a search result indicating the next position of the search text, or null if there is no match

Authorization

Scripts that use this method require authorization with one or more of the followingscopes:

  • https://www.googleapis.com/auth/documents.currentonly
  • https://www.googleapis.com/auth/documents

getAlignment()

Retrieves theHorizontalAlignment.

// Opens the Docs file by its ID. If you created your script from within// a Google Docs file, you can use DocumentApp.getActiveDocument() instead.// TODO(developer): Replace the ID with your own.constdoc=DocumentApp.openById('123abc');// Gets the body contents of the tab by its ID.// TODO(developer): Replace the ID with your own.constbody=doc.getTab('123abc').asDocumentTab().getBody();// Gets the first paragraph from the body.constparagraph=body.getParagraphs()[0];// Sets the horizontal alignment to left for the first paragraph.paragraph.setAlignment(DocumentApp.HorizontalAlignment.LEFT);// Gets the horizontal alignment of the first paragraph and logs it to the// console.console.log(paragraph.getAlignment().toString());

Return

HorizontalAlignment|null — The alignment.

Authorization

Scripts that use this method require authorization with one or more of the followingscopes:

  • https://www.googleapis.com/auth/documents.currentonly
  • https://www.googleapis.com/auth/documents

getAttributes()

Retrieves the element's attributes.

The result is an object containing a property for each valid element attribute where eachproperty name corresponds to an item in theDocumentApp.Attribute enumeration.

constdoc=DocumentApp.getActiveDocument();constdocumentTab=doc.getActiveTab().asDocumentTab();constbody=documentTab.getBody();// Append a styled paragraph.constpar=body.appendParagraph('A bold, italicized paragraph.');par.setBold(true);par.setItalic(true);// Retrieve the paragraph's attributes.constatts=par.getAttributes();// Log the paragraph attributes.for(constattinatts){Logger.log(`${att}:${atts[att]}`);}

Return

Object — The element's attributes.

Authorization

Scripts that use this method require authorization with one or more of the followingscopes:

  • https://www.googleapis.com/auth/documents.currentonly
  • https://www.googleapis.com/auth/documents

getChild(childIndex)

Retrieves the child element at the specified child index.

constbody=DocumentApp.getActiveDocument().getActiveTab().asDocumentTab().getBody();// Obtain the first element in the tab.constfirstChild=body.getChild(0);// If it's a paragraph, set its contents.if(firstChild.getType()===DocumentApp.ElementType.PARAGRAPH){firstChild.asParagraph().setText('This is the first paragraph.');}

Parameters

NameTypeDescription
childIndexIntegerThe index of the child element to retrieve.

Return

Element — The child element at the specified index.

Authorization

Scripts that use this method require authorization with one or more of the followingscopes:

  • https://www.googleapis.com/auth/documents.currentonly
  • https://www.googleapis.com/auth/documents

getChildIndex(child)

Retrieves the child index for the specified child element.

Parameters

NameTypeDescription
childElementThe child element for which to retrieve the index.

Return

Integer — The child index.

Authorization

Scripts that use this method require authorization with one or more of the followingscopes:

  • https://www.googleapis.com/auth/documents.currentonly
  • https://www.googleapis.com/auth/documents

getHeading()

Retrieves theParagraphHeading.

// Opens the Docs file by its ID. If you created your script from within// a Google Docs file, you can use DocumentApp.getActiveDocument() instead.// TODO(developer): Replace the ID with your own.constdoc=DocumentApp.openById('123abc');// Gets the body contents of the tab by its ID.// TODO(developer): Replace the ID with your own.constbody=doc.getTab('123abc').asDocumentTab().getBody();// Adds a paragraph to the body.constparagraph=body.appendParagraph('Title heading');// Sets the paragraph heading style to 'Title.'paragraph.setHeading(DocumentApp.ParagraphHeading.TITLE);// Gets the heading style and logs it to the console.console.log(paragraph.getHeading().toString());

Return

ParagraphHeading|null — The heading.

Authorization

Scripts that use this method require authorization with one or more of the followingscopes:

  • https://www.googleapis.com/auth/documents.currentonly
  • https://www.googleapis.com/auth/documents

getIndentEnd()

Retrieves the end indentation, in points.

Return

Number|null — the end indentation, in points

Authorization

Scripts that use this method require authorization with one or more of the followingscopes:

  • https://www.googleapis.com/auth/documents.currentonly
  • https://www.googleapis.com/auth/documents

getIndentFirstLine()

Retrieves the first line indentation, in points.

Return

Number|null — the first line indentation, in points

Authorization

Scripts that use this method require authorization with one or more of the followingscopes:

  • https://www.googleapis.com/auth/documents.currentonly
  • https://www.googleapis.com/auth/documents

getIndentStart()

Retrieves the start indentation.

Return

Number|null — the start indentation

Authorization

Scripts that use this method require authorization with one or more of the followingscopes:

  • https://www.googleapis.com/auth/documents.currentonly
  • https://www.googleapis.com/auth/documents

getLineSpacing()

Retrieves the line spacing, in points.

Return

Number|null — the line spacing, in points

Authorization

Scripts that use this method require authorization with one or more of the followingscopes:

  • https://www.googleapis.com/auth/documents.currentonly
  • https://www.googleapis.com/auth/documents

getLinkUrl()

Retrieves the link url.

Return

String|null — the link url, or null if the element contains multiple values for this attribute

Authorization

Scripts that use this method require authorization with one or more of the followingscopes:

  • https://www.googleapis.com/auth/documents.currentonly
  • https://www.googleapis.com/auth/documents

getNextSibling()

Retrieves the element's next sibling element.

The next sibling has the same parent and follows the current element.

Return

Element|null — The next sibling element.

Authorization

Scripts that use this method require authorization with one or more of the followingscopes:

  • https://www.googleapis.com/auth/documents.currentonly
  • https://www.googleapis.com/auth/documents

getNumChildren()

Retrieves the number of children.

constbody=DocumentApp.getActiveDocument().getActiveTab().asDocumentTab().getBody();// Log the number of elements in the tab.Logger.log(`There are${body.getNumChildren()} elements in the tab's body.`);

Return

Integer — The number of children.

Authorization

Scripts that use this method require authorization with one or more of the followingscopes:

  • https://www.googleapis.com/auth/documents.currentonly
  • https://www.googleapis.com/auth/documents

getParent()

Retrieves the element's parent element.

The parent element contains the current element.

Return

ContainerElement|null — The parent element.

Authorization

Scripts that use this method require authorization with one or more of the followingscopes:

  • https://www.googleapis.com/auth/documents.currentonly
  • https://www.googleapis.com/auth/documents

getPositionedImage(id)

Gets aPositionedImage by the image's ID.

Parameters

NameTypeDescription
idStringthe image id

Return

PositionedImage — the positioned image

Authorization

Scripts that use this method require authorization with one or more of the followingscopes:

  • https://www.googleapis.com/auth/documents.currentonly
  • https://www.googleapis.com/auth/documents

getPositionedImages()

Gets allPositionedImage objects anchored to the paragraph.

Return

PositionedImage[] — a list of positioned images

Authorization

Scripts that use this method require authorization with one or more of the followingscopes:

  • https://www.googleapis.com/auth/documents.currentonly
  • https://www.googleapis.com/auth/documents

getPreviousSibling()

Retrieves the element's previous sibling element.

The previous sibling has the same parent and precedes the current element.

Return

Element|null — The previous sibling element.

Authorization

Scripts that use this method require authorization with one or more of the followingscopes:

  • https://www.googleapis.com/auth/documents.currentonly
  • https://www.googleapis.com/auth/documents

getSpacingAfter()

Retrieves the spacing after the element, in points.

Return

Number|null — the spacing after the element, in points

Authorization

Scripts that use this method require authorization with one or more of the followingscopes:

  • https://www.googleapis.com/auth/documents.currentonly
  • https://www.googleapis.com/auth/documents

getSpacingBefore()

Retrieves the spacing before the element, in points.

Return

Number|null — the spacing before the element, in points

Authorization

Scripts that use this method require authorization with one or more of the followingscopes:

  • https://www.googleapis.com/auth/documents.currentonly
  • https://www.googleapis.com/auth/documents

getText()

Retrieves the contents of the element as a text string.

Return

String — the contents of the element as text string

Authorization

Scripts that use this method require authorization with one or more of the followingscopes:

  • https://www.googleapis.com/auth/documents.currentonly
  • https://www.googleapis.com/auth/documents

getTextAlignment()

Gets the text alignment. The available types of alignment areDocumentApp.TextAlignment.NORMAL,DocumentApp.TextAlignment.SUBSCRIPT, andDocumentApp.TextAlignment.SUPERSCRIPT.

Return

TextAlignment|null — the type of text alignment, ornull if the text contains multiple types of text alignments or if the text alignment has never been set

Authorization

Scripts that use this method require authorization with one or more of the followingscopes:

  • https://www.googleapis.com/auth/documents.currentonly
  • https://www.googleapis.com/auth/documents

getType()

Retrieves the element'sElementType.

UsegetType() to determine the exact type of a given element.

constdoc=DocumentApp.getActiveDocument();constdocumentTab=doc.getActiveTab().asDocumentTab();constbody=documentTab.getBody();// Obtain the first element in the active tab's body.constfirstChild=body.getChild(0);// Use getType() to determine the element's type.if(firstChild.getType()===DocumentApp.ElementType.PARAGRAPH){Logger.log('The first element is a paragraph.');}else{Logger.log('The first element is not a paragraph.');}

Return

ElementType — The element type.

Authorization

Scripts that use this method require authorization with one or more of the followingscopes:

  • https://www.googleapis.com/auth/documents.currentonly
  • https://www.googleapis.com/auth/documents

insertHorizontalRule(childIndex)

Creates and inserts aHorizontalRule at the specified index.

Parameters

NameTypeDescription
childIndexIntegerthe index at which to insert the element

Return

HorizontalRule — the new horizontal rule element

Authorization

Scripts that use this method require authorization with one or more of the followingscopes:

  • https://www.googleapis.com/auth/documents.currentonly
  • https://www.googleapis.com/auth/documents

insertInlineImage(childIndex, image)

Creates and inserts a newInlineImage from the specified image blob, at the specifiedindex.

Parameters

NameTypeDescription
childIndexIntegerthe index at which to insert the element
imageBlobSourcethe image data

Return

InlineImage — the inserted inline image element

Authorization

Scripts that use this method require authorization with one or more of the followingscopes:

  • https://www.googleapis.com/auth/documents.currentonly
  • https://www.googleapis.com/auth/documents

insertInlineImage(childIndex, image)

Inserts the givenInlineImage at the specified index.

Parameters

NameTypeDescription
childIndexIntegerthe index at which to insert the element
imageInlineImagethe image data

Return

InlineImage — the inserted inline image element

Authorization

Scripts that use this method require authorization with one or more of the followingscopes:

  • https://www.googleapis.com/auth/documents.currentonly
  • https://www.googleapis.com/auth/documents

insertPageBreak(childIndex)

Creates and inserts a newPageBreak at the specified index.

Note:PageBreaks may not be contained withinTableCells.If the current element is contained in a table cell, an exception will be thrown.

Parameters

NameTypeDescription
childIndexIntegerthe index at which to insert the element

Return

PageBreak — the new page break element

Authorization

Scripts that use this method require authorization with one or more of the followingscopes:

  • https://www.googleapis.com/auth/documents.currentonly
  • https://www.googleapis.com/auth/documents

insertPageBreak(childIndex, pageBreak)

Inserts the givenPageBreak at the specified index.

Note:PageBreaks may not be contained withinTableCells.If the current element is contained in a table cell, an exception will be thrown.

Parameters

NameTypeDescription
childIndexIntegerthe index at which to insert the element
pageBreakPageBreakthe p[age break to insert

Return

PageBreak — the inserted page break element

Authorization

Scripts that use this method require authorization with one or more of the followingscopes:

  • https://www.googleapis.com/auth/documents.currentonly
  • https://www.googleapis.com/auth/documents

insertText(childIndex, text)

Creates and inserts a new text element at the specified index.

Parameters

NameTypeDescription
childIndexIntegerthe index at which to insert the element
textStringthe text contents

Return

Text — the new text element

Authorization

Scripts that use this method require authorization with one or more of the followingscopes:

  • https://www.googleapis.com/auth/documents.currentonly
  • https://www.googleapis.com/auth/documents

insertText(childIndex, text)

Inserts the givenText element at the specified index, with the specified textcontents.

Parameters

NameTypeDescription
childIndexIntegerthe index at which to insert the element
textTextthe text element to insert

Return

Text — the inserted text element

Authorization

Scripts that use this method require authorization with one or more of the followingscopes:

  • https://www.googleapis.com/auth/documents.currentonly
  • https://www.googleapis.com/auth/documents

isAtDocumentEnd()

Determines whether the element is at the end of theDocument.

Return

Boolean — Whether the element is at the end of the tab.

Authorization

Scripts that use this method require authorization with one or more of the followingscopes:

  • https://www.googleapis.com/auth/documents.currentonly
  • https://www.googleapis.com/auth/documents

isLeftToRight()

Retrieves the left-to-right setting.

Return

Boolean|null — the left-to-right setting

Authorization

Scripts that use this method require authorization with one or more of the followingscopes:

  • https://www.googleapis.com/auth/documents.currentonly
  • https://www.googleapis.com/auth/documents

merge()

Merges the element with the preceding sibling of the same type.

Only elements of the sameElementType can be merged. Any child elements contained inthe current element are moved to the preceding sibling element.

The current element is removed from the document.

constdoc=DocumentApp.getActiveDocument();constdocumentTab=doc.getActiveTab().asDocumentTab();constbody=documentTab.getBody();// Example 1: Merge paragraphs// Append two paragraphs to the document's active tab.constpar1=body.appendParagraph('Paragraph 1.');constpar2=body.appendParagraph('Paragraph 2.');// Merge the newly added paragraphs into a single paragraph.par2.merge();// Example 2: Merge table cells// Create a two-dimensional array containing the table's cell contents.constcells=[['Row 1, Cell 1','Row 1, Cell 2'],['Row 2, Cell 1','Row 2, Cell 2'],];// Build a table from the array.consttable=body.appendTable(cells);// Get the first row in the table.constrow=table.getRow(0);// Get the two cells in this row.constcell1=row.getCell(0);constcell2=row.getCell(1);// Merge the current cell into its preceding sibling element.constmerged=cell2.merge();

Return

Paragraph|null — The merged element.

Authorization

Scripts that use this method require authorization with one or more of the followingscopes:

  • https://www.googleapis.com/auth/documents.currentonly
  • https://www.googleapis.com/auth/documents

removeChild(child)

Removes the specified child element.

Parameters

NameTypeDescription
childElementthe child element to remove

Return

Paragraph — the current element

Authorization

Scripts that use this method require authorization with one or more of the followingscopes:

  • https://www.googleapis.com/auth/documents.currentonly
  • https://www.googleapis.com/auth/documents

removeFromParent()

Removes the element from its parent.

constdoc=DocumentApp.getActiveDocument();constdocumentTab=doc.getActiveTab().asDocumentTab();constbody=documentTab.getBody();// Remove all images in the active tab's body.constimgs=body.getImages();for(leti=0;i <imgs.length;i++){imgs[i].removeFromParent();}

Return

Paragraph|null — The removed element.

Authorization

Scripts that use this method require authorization with one or more of the followingscopes:

  • https://www.googleapis.com/auth/documents.currentonly
  • https://www.googleapis.com/auth/documents

removePositionedImage(id)

Removes aPositionedImage by the image's ID.

Parameters

NameTypeDescription
idStringthe image id

Return

Boolean — whether or not the specified image was removed

Authorization

Scripts that use this method require authorization with one or more of the followingscopes:

  • https://www.googleapis.com/auth/documents.currentonly
  • https://www.googleapis.com/auth/documents

replaceText(searchPattern, replacement)

Replaces all occurrences of a given text pattern with a given replacement string, using regularexpressions.

The search pattern is passed as a string, not a JavaScript regular expression object.Because of this you'll need to escape any backslashes in the pattern.

This methods uses Google'sRE2 regularexpression library, which limits thesupported syntax.

The provided regular expression pattern is independently matched against each text blockcontained in the current element.

constbody=DocumentApp.getActiveDocument().getActiveTab().asDocumentTab().getBody();// Clear the text surrounding "Apps Script", with or without text.body.replaceText('^.*Apps ?Script.*$','Apps Script');

Parameters

NameTypeDescription
searchPatternStringthe regex pattern to search for
replacementStringthe text to use as replacement

Return

Element — the current element

Authorization

Scripts that use this method require authorization with one or more of the followingscopes:

  • https://www.googleapis.com/auth/documents.currentonly
  • https://www.googleapis.com/auth/documents

setAlignment(alignment)

Sets theHorizontalAlignment.

Parameters

NameTypeDescription
alignmentHorizontalAlignmentthe horizontal alignment

Return

Paragraph — the current element

Authorization

Scripts that use this method require authorization with one or more of the followingscopes:

  • https://www.googleapis.com/auth/documents.currentonly
  • https://www.googleapis.com/auth/documents

setAttributes(attributes)

Sets the element's attributes.

The specified attributes parameter must be an object where each property name is an item intheDocumentApp.Attribute enumeration and each property value is the new value to beapplied.

constdoc=DocumentApp.getActiveDocument();constdocumentTab=doc.getActiveTab().asDocumentTab();constbody=documentTab.getBody();// Define a custom paragraph style.conststyle={};style[DocumentApp.Attribute.HORIZONTAL_ALIGNMENT]=DocumentApp.HorizontalAlignment.RIGHT;style[DocumentApp.Attribute.FONT_FAMILY]='Calibri';style[DocumentApp.Attribute.FONT_SIZE]=18;style[DocumentApp.Attribute.BOLD]=true;// Append a plain paragraph.constpar=body.appendParagraph('A paragraph with custom style.');// Apply the custom style.par.setAttributes(style);

Parameters

NameTypeDescription
attributesObjectThe element's attributes.

Return

Paragraph — The current element.

Authorization

Scripts that use this method require authorization with one or more of the followingscopes:

  • https://www.googleapis.com/auth/documents.currentonly
  • https://www.googleapis.com/auth/documents

setHeading(heading)

Sets theParagraphHeading.

Parameters

NameTypeDescription
headingParagraphHeadingthe heading

Return

Paragraph — the current element

Authorization

Scripts that use this method require authorization with one or more of the followingscopes:

  • https://www.googleapis.com/auth/documents.currentonly
  • https://www.googleapis.com/auth/documents

setIndentEnd(indentEnd)

Sets the end indentation, in points.

Parameters

NameTypeDescription
indentEndNumberthe end indentation, in points

Return

Paragraph — the current element

Authorization

Scripts that use this method require authorization with one or more of the followingscopes:

  • https://www.googleapis.com/auth/documents.currentonly
  • https://www.googleapis.com/auth/documents

setIndentFirstLine(indentFirstLine)

Sets the first line indentation, in points.

Parameters

NameTypeDescription
indentFirstLineNumberthe first line indentation, in points

Return

Paragraph — the current element

Authorization

Scripts that use this method require authorization with one or more of the followingscopes:

  • https://www.googleapis.com/auth/documents.currentonly
  • https://www.googleapis.com/auth/documents

setIndentStart(indentStart)

Sets the start indentation, in points.

Parameters

NameTypeDescription
indentStartNumberthe start indentation, in points

Return

Paragraph — the current element

Authorization

Scripts that use this method require authorization with one or more of the followingscopes:

  • https://www.googleapis.com/auth/documents.currentonly
  • https://www.googleapis.com/auth/documents

setLeftToRight(leftToRight)

Sets the left-to-right setting.

Parameters

NameTypeDescription
leftToRightBooleanthe left-to-right setting

Return

Paragraph — the current element

Authorization

Scripts that use this method require authorization with one or more of the followingscopes:

  • https://www.googleapis.com/auth/documents.currentonly
  • https://www.googleapis.com/auth/documents

setLineSpacing(multiplier)

Sets the line spacing, as a quantity indicating the number of lines to use for spacing.

Parameters

NameTypeDescription
multiplierNumberthe number of lines

Return

Paragraph — the current element

Authorization

Scripts that use this method require authorization with one or more of the followingscopes:

  • https://www.googleapis.com/auth/documents.currentonly
  • https://www.googleapis.com/auth/documents

setLinkUrl(url)

Sets the link url.

Parameters

NameTypeDescription
urlStringthe link url

Return

Paragraph — the current element

Authorization

Scripts that use this method require authorization with one or more of the followingscopes:

  • https://www.googleapis.com/auth/documents.currentonly
  • https://www.googleapis.com/auth/documents

setSpacingAfter(spacingAfter)

Sets the spacing after the element, in points.

Parameters

NameTypeDescription
spacingAfterNumberthe spacing after the element, in points

Return

Paragraph — the current element

Authorization

Scripts that use this method require authorization with one or more of the followingscopes:

  • https://www.googleapis.com/auth/documents.currentonly
  • https://www.googleapis.com/auth/documents

setSpacingBefore(spacingBefore)

Sets the spacing before the element, in points.

Parameters

NameTypeDescription
spacingBeforeNumberthe spacing before the element, in points

Return

Paragraph — the current element

Authorization

Scripts that use this method require authorization with one or more of the followingscopes:

  • https://www.googleapis.com/auth/documents.currentonly
  • https://www.googleapis.com/auth/documents

setText(text)

Sets the contents of the paragraph as text.

Note: existing contents are cleared.

Parameters

NameTypeDescription
textStringthe new text contents

Authorization

Scripts that use this method require authorization with one or more of the followingscopes:

  • https://www.googleapis.com/auth/documents.currentonly
  • https://www.googleapis.com/auth/documents

setTextAlignment(textAlignment)

Sets the text alignment. The available types of alignment areDocumentApp.TextAlignment.NORMAL,DocumentApp.TextAlignment.SUBSCRIPT, andDocumentApp.TextAlignment.SUPERSCRIPT.

// Make the entire first paragraph in the active tab be superscript.constdocumentTab=DocumentApp.getActiveDocument().getActiveTab().asDocumentTab();consttext=documentTab.getBody().getParagraphs()[0].editAsText();text.setTextAlignment(DocumentApp.TextAlignment.SUPERSCRIPT);

Parameters

NameTypeDescription
textAlignmentTextAlignmentthe type of text alignment to apply

Return

Paragraph — the current element

Authorization

Scripts that use this method require authorization with one or more of the followingscopes:

  • https://www.googleapis.com/auth/documents.currentonly
  • https://www.googleapis.com/auth/documents

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Last updated 2025-12-11 UTC.