How To Use The Table Of Contents In Word

Lesson 15: How to Create a Table of Contents in Discussion

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How to create a table of contents in Discussion

Imagine yous're working with a really long document in Microsoft Discussion, like an academic paper or a big report. Depending on the project, it might be dozens or even hundreds of pages long! When a document is this big, information technology can be difficult to remember which page has what data. Fortunately, Give-and-take allows yous to insert a tabular array of contents, making it like shooting fish in a barrel to organize and navigate your document.

A table of contents is just similar the list of chapters at the first of a volume. It lists each section in the document and the page number where that section begins. A really basic table of contents might expect similar this:

Screenshot of Microsoft Word

You could create a table of contents manually—typing the section names and page numbers—but it would take a lot of work. And if yous e'er decide to rearrange your sections or add together more than information, you'll have to update everything all once again. Nevertheless, with the right formatting, Word can create and update a tabular array of contents automatically.

Step 1: Apply heading styles

If you've already read our Applying and Modifying Styles lesson, you lot know they're an easy way to add professional text formatting to different parts of your document. Styles as well serve another important purpose: calculation a hidden layer of organization and structure to your document.

If y'all apply a heading style, you're telling Word that you've started a new part of your document. When you lot insert the table of contents, it will create a section for each heading. In the table of contents higher up, each chapter uses a heading style, and so in that location are four sections.

To apply a heading style, select the text you want to format, then choose the desired heading in the Styles grouping on the Home tab.

Screenshot of Microsoft Word

Step 2: Insert the tabular array of contents

Now for the easy office! Once you've applied heading styles, yous can insert your tabular array of contents in simply a few clicks. Navigate to the References tab on the Ribbon, then click the Table of Contents control. Select a congenital-in tabular array from the menu that appears, and the table of contents will announced in your document.

Screenshot of Microsoft Word

Equally you tin can run across in the image below, the table of contents uses the heading styles in your document to make up one's mind where each section begins. Sections that begin with a Heading 2 or Heading 3 way will be nested within a Heading i style, much like a multilevel list.

Screenshot of Microsoft Word

A table of contents also creates links for each section, allowing you to navigate to different parts of your document. Just hold the Ctrl cardinal on your keyboard and click to go to whatsoever section.

Screenshot of Microsoft Word

Step iii: Update as needed

If yous edit or add to your document, information technology'southward like shooting fish in a barrel to update the table of contents. Only select the table of contents, click Update Table, and choose Update Entire Tabular array in the dialog box that appears. The table of contents will then update to reflect whatever changes.

Screenshot of Microsoft Word

No matter how large your document may be, you can see there's null complicated about creating a table of contents. If you want fifty-fifty more command over how your table of contents appears, check out this tutorial from Microsoft on Taking a Tabular array of Contents to the Next Level.

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