Where does MergeField live in the IronWord API?

MergeField is a class in the IronWord.Models.MailMerge namespace, shipped in IronWord.dll, with base type System.Object. MailMerge.GetFields returns an IReadOnlyList of MergeField, one per discovered field in the document.

How do you list the merge fields in a Word document with C#?

Call GetFields on the document's MailMerge to get an IReadOnlyList of MergeField, then read each field's Name, Instruction, Kind, and RegionName. Use GetFieldNames instead if only the names are needed.

Class MergeField

Represents a discovered mail merge field within a Word document.

Inheritance

System.Object

MergeField

Namespace: IronWord.Models.MailMerge

Assembly: IronWord.dll

Syntax

public class MergeField : Object

A MergeField is the record IronWord hands back for each merge field it discovers in a Word document, so a developer can inspect a template's fields before supplying data. Each one describes a single placeholder: the field name to match against a data source, the raw field instruction stored in the document, and what role the field plays.

Get the fields from a MailMerge by calling GetFields, which returns an IReadOnlyList<MergeField>. Name is the field name parsed from the instruction, the key to match against a column or dictionary entry. Instruction is the full field instruction text as stored (for example a MERGEFIELD directive). Kind is a MergeFieldKind that tells a regular value field apart from a region marker or a NEXT-record field, and RegionName carries the region name when the field begins or ends a repeating region, otherwise an empty string. ToString gives a readable summary of the field. Reading these is how you confirm a template's fields line up with the data before running the merge. The replace words how-to covers replacing field text, and the document element tutorial explains the document model these fields sit in.

foreach (MergeField field in document.MailMerge.GetFields())
    Console.WriteLine(field.Name);

Constructors

MergeField(String, String, MergeFieldKind)

Initializes a new instance of the MergeField class.

Declaration

public MergeField(string name, string instruction, MergeFieldKind kind)

Parameters

Type	Name	Description
System.String	name	The merge field name parsed from the field instruction.
System.String	instruction	The full field instruction text (e.g. " MERGEFIELD FirstName * MERGEFORMAT ").
MergeFieldKind	kind	The kind of merge field.

Properties

Instruction

Gets the full field instruction text as stored in the document (e.g. MERGEFIELD FirstName * MERGEFORMAT ).

Declaration

public string Instruction { get; }

Property Value

Type	Description
System.String

Kind

Gets the kind of merge field (a regular value field, a region marker, or a Next-record marker).

Declaration

public MergeFieldKind Kind { get; }

Property Value

Type	Description
MergeFieldKind

Name

Gets the merge field name (the identifier following MERGEFIELD in the instruction).

Declaration

public string Name { get; }

Property Value

Type	Description
System.String

RegionName

Gets the region name when Kind is TableStart or TableEnd; otherwise an empty string.

Declaration

public string RegionName { get; }

Property Value

Type	Description
System.String

Methods

ToString()

Declaration

public override string ToString()

Returns

Type	Description
System.String