How to split text into paragraphs
- Paste your text into Text to split. A sample is already there, and Clear text empties the box.
- Choose Split by: Sentences, Words or Characters.
- Type a whole number. Its label follows the mode: Sentences per paragraph, Words per paragraph or Maximum characters per paragraph.
- Leave Keep my existing paragraph breaks (blank lines) ticked to respect the breaks you already have.
- Press Copy paragraphs to copy the result.
How the splitting works
Inside each block the tool turns line breaks and runs of spaces into single spaces, so hard-wrapped text is joined back together. A block is the text between blank lines, or the whole text when Keep my existing paragraph breaks is unticked.
- Sentences: a sentence ends at a period, question mark, exclamation point or ellipsis followed by a space. A closing quote or bracket stays with its sentence. Nothing is cut inside decimals such as 3.14, web addresses, initials such as J. K., abbreviations such as U.S., e.g. and Dr., or a month or No. before a number, and a stop followed by a lowercase letter does not start a new sentence. Full-width stops (。！？) end a sentence even without a space. The rules follow the idea of the Unicode sentence boundary standard (UAX #29) with common English abbreviations added.
- Words: words are the pieces between spaces, so every paragraph holds exactly the number you enter, except the last.
- Characters: each paragraph gets as many whole words as fit within the maximum. A word is cut only when it is longer than the maximum by itself, such as a very long web address. An emoji counts as one character.
Worked example
The sample has six sentences. With Split by on Sentences and the size at 3, the tool shows "6 sentences split into 2 paragraphs." and this result:
The quick brown fox jumps over the lazy dog. She sells seashells by the seashore. Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers. How much wood would a woodchuck chuck? A stitch in time saves nine. Early bird catches the worm.
A size of 2 gives 3 paragraphs, and Split by Words with a size of 10 gives 5 paragraphs from the 41 words.
Limits and edge cases
A stop with no space after it is not a sentence end, so "end.Start" stays whole. A stop inside a quotation does end a sentence, so a long quote is split. An abbreviation missing from the built-in list can cause an extra break, so skim the result. Chinese and Japanese text has no spaces, so Words mode counts each unbroken run as one word; use Sentences or Characters. Your text stays in your browser. To check counts afterwards use the Word Counter, to clear stray spaces first use the Whitespace Cleaner, and to fix capital letters use the Text Case Converter.
Frequently asked questions
How do I split a long text into paragraphs?
Paste it into Text to split, choose Sentences, set the size to 3 and copy the result. Raise or lower the size until the text looks right.
How many sentences should a paragraph have?
Short paragraphs of two to four sentences are a common target for reading on a screen, so start with 3 and adjust.
Does it keep the paragraph breaks I already have?
Yes, by default. Blank lines are kept, and an existing paragraph is split further only when it is longer than your size. Untick Keep my existing paragraph breaks to ignore them.
How do I split text into chunks for a character limit?
Choose Characters and enter the maximum, for example 160 for a text message. Each chunk holds whole words and stays within the limit.
Why did it not split after Dr. or 3.14?
A stop ends a sentence only when a space follows it and it is not part of a known abbreviation, an initial, a decimal number or a web address. To force a break there, add a blank line yourself.