Acrobat Reader switches back to selection tool every time I highlight something

[J.P. Guarnieri]

I like highlighting when I'm studying. I noticed that, now, every time I highlight something, Acrobat Reader automatically switches from the highlighting tool to the text selection tool, forcing me to click on the highlighting tool again. This is quite annoying, I'm pretty sure it didn't do that before. Is there a configuration I need to change to stop this behavior?

[creative explorer · Accepted solution]

@J.P. Guarnieri To resolve this, you typically need to enable a "Keep tool selected" or "Retain current tool" option. For many recent versions of Adobe Acrobat Reader and Pro, the intended way to keep an annotation tool, like the Highlighting Tool, active for continuous use is to double-click its icon in the toolbar. When you single-click the tool, it's designed to perform one action (one highlight) and then automatically revert to the Text Selection Tool. However, if you double-click the Highlighting Tool icon in the toolbar, it will "lock" the tool, allowing you to highlight multiple sections consecutively without needing to re-select it each time. It will remain active until you explicitly select another tool (like the Hand Tool or Text Selection Tool) or press the Esc key. This behavior is by design for efficiency in alternating between commenting and selecting, and it is not related to any privacy or permission issues.

[BMA-MH]

I am having the same issue - but double clicking it doesn't do anything. 

The menu also has not proved helpful and there is no option I can find anywhere to "keep tool selected" or the retain options. Where are these options? My adobe updated and now everything is on the opposite side and my highlight changed to having to select it for every-single-word = so frustrating.

[Meenakshi Negi]

Hi BMA-MH,

Thank you for reaching out.

The "Keep tool selected" option is in the floating toolbar at the top left. For more information, please refer to the following help document: https://adobe.ly/4pJ99Ny. 

Check the screenshot below for reference:

Let us know if you are still experiencing the issue.

Thanks,

Meenakshi