A template is simply a starting point. A Word (or any other Office) template is something that you create once that can be used over and over again. To create a template, you can start with a document you already created, one you downloaded, or a brand new one that you decide to customize in any number of ways.

1. To save a document as a template, click File > Save As.
2. Browse to the location where you want to save your template; you have several choices:

3. After you’ve made the choice of where you want to save your template, in the Save as type box, choose the type of template you want. You have three choices:

1. When you save it as a Word Template, it has the suffix .dotx. (This format—used for Word 2013, Word 2010, and Word 2007 documents—gives you access to all of Word’s new features.)
2. By saving it as a Word-Macro-Enabled Template (.dotm), this allows you to save and enable the macros you created within the template.
3. Or, you can save it as a Word 97-2003 Template (a .dot file).

Once you’ve saved your document as a template, the next time you open it, it creates a copy of itself that you can use—and even change—as many times as you want. Then, when you want to create a document based on this template, you open the template, create your document, and save it as a Word document.

Via Microsoft