w:rStyle (Run Style Reference)

References a named character style by its styleId, applying its run properties to the run.

Parent elements

w:rPr

Description

w:rStyle references a named character style by its styleId, applying all run properties defined in that style to the run. It is defined in ECMA-376 Part 1 §17.3.2.29.

Character styles applied via w:rStyle have lower priority than direct run properties set in the same w:rPr. The w:val must match the w:styleId attribute of a w:style element with w:type="character" in styles.xml.

Attributes

Attribute	Type	Possible Values	Description
`w:val`	`ST_String`	The `styleId` of any character style defined in the document (e.g. `DefaultParagraphFont`, `Hyperlink`, `Strong`, `Emphasis`).	References the character style to apply.

Examples

<w:r>
  <w:rPr>
    <w:rStyle w:val="Emphasis"/>
  </w:rPr>
  <w:t>Emphasised text</w:t>
</w:r>

new Run(
  new RunProperties(
    new RunStyle { Val = "Emphasis" }),
  new Text("Emphasised text"));

<!-- Character style with override: hyperlink with bold -->
<w:r>
  <w:rPr>
    <w:rStyle w:val="Hyperlink"/>
    <w:b/>  <!-- Override style's default formatting -->
  </w:rPr>
  <w:t>Bold Hyperlink</w:t>
</w:r>

new Run(
  new RunProperties(
    new RunStyle { Val = "Hyperlink" },
    new Bold()),  // Overrides style
  new Text("Bold Hyperlink"));

<!-- Custom character style -->
<w:r>
  <w:rPr>
    <w:rStyle w:val="CustomTermStyle"/>
    <w:color w:val="0070C0"/>  <!-- Direct property -->
  </w:rPr>
  <w:t>Important Term</w:t>
</w:r>

new Run(
  new RunProperties(
    new RunStyle { Val = "CustomTermStyle" },
    new Color { Val = "0070C0" }),
  new Text("Important Term"));

Built-in Character Styles

Style ID	Display Name	Use Case	Typical Formatting
`DefaultParagraphFont`	Default Paragraph Font	Default run formatting	Inherits from paragraph style
`Hyperlink`	Hyperlink	Web/email links	Blue, underlined
`FollowedHyperlink`	Followed Hyperlink	Visited links	Purple, underlined
`Strong`	Strong	Bold emphasis	Bold weight
`Emphasis`	Emphasis	Italic emphasis	Italic style
`IntenseEmphasis`	Intense Emphasis	Bold + italic + color	Bold + italic + colored
`BookTitle`	Book Title	Referenced book titles	Italic
`SubtleReference`	Subtle Reference	Cross-references	Gray color
`NoSpacing`	No Spacing	Inline code/monospace	Monospace font

Character Style Priority

Highest: Direct run properties in w:rPr (direct formatting)
Medium: Character style (w:rStyle)
Lowest: Paragraph style’s run properties (w:pPr/w:rPr)
Fallback: Document’s default character formatting

Notes

Style IDs are locale-independent internal identifiers; display name is in w:style/w:name.
Missing Style: If w:val references a non-existent character style, the element is ignored.
Direct Override: Direct run properties in w:rPr always override character style properties.
Paragraph Style Inheritance: Character styles are independent; they don’t inherit from paragraph styles.
Linked Styles: Some character styles are linked to paragraph styles (e.g., “Heading 1 Char”); they sync when parent paragraph style changes.
Custom Character Styles: Documents can define custom character styles in styles.xml with custom style IDs.
Best Practice: Use character styles for semantic markup (emphasis, strong, hyperlink) rather than direct formatting.
Performance: Overuse of direct character formatting (instead of styles) increases file size and reduces consistency.