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Excel - Excel 2003 Natural Language Formulas: Where Did They Go? (Excel Replacement) - Episode 1117

363 views · Published 7 October 2009 · 2:40 · Indexed 20 September 2026

Channel: MrExcel.com · 2009 · Education

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Microsoft Excel Tutorial: Excel Natural Language Formulas: Where Did They Go? (Excel Replacement).

Welcome to another episode of the MrExcel Podcast! Today, we're diving into an obscure feature that was present in Excel 2003 - Natural Language Formulas. Our viewer, Michael, has asked about this feature and where it can be found in Excel 2007. Well, unfortunately, it's no longer available in the newer version. But don't worry, there's a workaround that we'll be discussing in this video.

In Excel 2003, you could go to Tools, Options, and on the Calculation tab, select "Accept labels in formulas". This allowed you to build formulas using column headings, such as =Profit/Revenue. The formula would then automatically adjust as you copied it down. However, in Excel 2007, this feature was removed. But fear not, there's a similar feature that can be used instead.

To achieve the same result in Excel 2007, we need to format our data as a table. This can be done by going to the Format tab and selecting one of the table formats. Once the data is in a table, we can use the square brackets to refer to the column headings in our formula, such as =[Profit]/[Revenue]. This will automatically adjust as we copy it down the table.

So while the Natural Language Formulas feature may be gone, we can still achieve the same result by formatting our data as a table. This may be a bit more of a hassle, but it's a great workaround for those who miss the old feature. And for those who are still using Excel 2003, well, you can continue to enjoy the convenience of Natural Language Formulas.

Thanks for tuning in to this episode of the MrExcel Podcast. Don't forget to like, comment, and subscribe for more Excel tips and tricks. And if you have any questions or suggestions for future episodes, leave them in the comments below. See you next time!

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Table of Contents:
(00:00) Introduction to Where Is It Wednesday theme
(00:30) Today's question about an obscure feature in Excel 2003
(00:40) How to use the Accept labels in formulas feature
(00:52) Natural Language Formula in Excel 2003
(01:02) Natural Language Formula is no longer available in Excel 2007
(01:20) How to use the replacement feature in Excel 2007
(01:53) Differences between the two features
(02:07) Recommendation for those using both Excel 2003 and 2007
(02:17) Clicking Like really helps the algorithm

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This video answers these common search terms:
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Using square brackets in formulas

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Michael wonders what happened to the old Excel 2003 Natural Language Formulas feature. It is out of Excel 2007, but replaced with something similar. Episode 1117 shows you now.

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