The Paragraph dialog box will close, and your hanging indents should appear in your selected text. Or, use the increment arrows to increase or decrease the indent 0.1 inch per click. Enter the length of your indent in inches (decimals or whole numbers) in the By text box.Select Hanging from the Special menu in the Paragraph dialog box.Select the dialog box launcher in the Paragraph group.įigure 8.Select the text in which you want to create hanging indents (see figure 4).How to Create Hanging Indents with the Paragraph Dialog Box But for multiple columns, leave the Right Indent to accommodate needed space between the columns. For a single column, set the Right Indent to 0' as well. If you want the text to align, then go to the Table Properties and in the Options, set the Left Indent to 0'. Your hanging indent will be created automatically as you move the ruler marker. To have Word automatically indent the first line of every paragraph you type, heed these steps: Conjure up the Paragraph dialog box (by clicking the Paragraph Settings down arrow at the lower right of the Paragraph group on the Home tab). If they don't, then I want the text to align. Pro Tip: If you have trouble moving the bottom triangle marker separately from the top triangle marker, move both markers to the right and then move the top marker back to the left. Press Ctrl+Shift+M to decrease a paragraphs indent by one tab stop. (By default, tabs are set every 0.5 inch.) You can press Ctrl+Shift+T to 'unhang' an indent, regardless of how the hanging indent was created. (Note that the square marker will move with the bottom triangle marker. You can press Ctrl+T to create a hanging indent that aligns body text with the first tab marker. Slide the bottom triangle marker in the ruler to the right.Pro Tip: Avoid selecting the entire document with methods such as Ctrl + A because you will select headings and other items that don’t normally have hanging indents. Or, select multiple paragraphs if you want to create several hanging indents simultaneously. On most computers, you can create a hanging indent by selecting the line you want indented and then holding down the Ctrl and T buttons at the same time. Set a value for the indentation and click OK. Open the Paragraph Settings menu and select the indentation type. An example is below: There are a few ways to create hanging indents. Select the text you want to format or place the cursor where you want to type. Place your cursor inside the individual paragraph in which you want to create a hanging indent. A hanging indent is an indent that indents all text except for the first line.If your ruler is already visible, skip to step 3. If you don't clear the bar tab stop before you print your document, the vertical line is printed.How to Create Hanging Indents with the Ruler Unlike other tabs, the bar tab is added to the text as soon as you click the ruler. If you don't clear the bar tab stop before you print your document, the vertical line is printed.Ĭlick or tap the bottom of the horizontal ruler where you want to set the tab stop.Ī Bar tab stop doesn't position text, it inserts a vertical bar at the tab position. In the Paragraph dialog box, choose or type the appropriate values for Left, Right, or Special ( First line or Hanging) indents: Use the ruler To do so, click in the paragraph you want to format or select multiple paragraphs, and then drag the First Line Indent marker left or right to the desired location. By default, tab stops are set every 0.5 inch. Unlike other tabs, the bar tab is added to the text as soon as you click the ruler. You can press Ctrl+T to create a hanging indent that aligns body text with the first tab marker. It inserts a vertical bar at the tab position. See Use decimal tabs to line up numbers with decimal points.Ī Bar tab stop doesn't position text. Without regard to the number of digits, the decimal point remains in the same position. As you type, the text fills toward the left.Ī Decimal tab stop aligns numbers around a decimal point. As you type, the text centers on this position.Ī Right tab stop sets the right end of the text line. As you type, the text fills toward the right.Ī Center tab stop sets the position at the middle of the text line. To add a first line indent to a paragraph, move the focus to the beginning of the first line of the paragraph and press the Tab key. Select Left Tab at the left end of the horizontal ruler to change it to the type of tab you want.Ī Left tab stop sets the left end of the text line. With a first line indent, the first line of a paragraph is indented more than the other lines in the paragraph. If you don't see the ruler at the top of your document, go to View > Ruler to display it.