Overview

Sometimes documents are easier to read if they are presented in a multiple column format. Click to see how to use columns in desktop publishing.

Microsoft Word allows the creation of multiple column publications.

In addition, Microsoft Word permits different sections of the same document to have a different number of columns.

Create a multiple column document

To change all of a document to have more than one column:

• from the Format menu select Columns to open the dialog box shown below

• click the picture showing the number of columns you need

• OR either select or type the number of columns

• check that the columns are being applied to the Whole document

• click the OK button to complete the operation

Portion of document in multiple columns

It is possible to have different parts of a document having different numbers of columns.

This may be achieved by either selecting the part to be changed OR by inserting section breaks in the document.

Selection to multiple columns

To change a selected portion to multiple columns

select the paragraphs

• from the Format menu select Columns to open the dialog box shown below

• click the picture showing the number of columns you need

• OR either select or type the number of columns

• check that the columns are being applied to the Selected text

• click the OK button to complete the operation

Sections to multiple columns

To take control of columns, insert section breaks where you need to have a change in the number of columns.

Click here to learn how to use section breaks.

To create multiple columns between section breaks:

• insert a break (either Next page OR Continuous) where the multiple columns are to start

• insert another break (either Next page OR Continuous) where the multiple columns are to end

• place the cursor inside the section

• from the Format menu select Columns to open the dialog box shown below

• click the picture showing the number of columns you need

• OR either select or type the number of columns

• check that the columns are being applied to the This section

• click the OK button to complete the operation

Options for multiple column sections

Line between columns

To insert a line between columns

• click in the Line between box

Equal or Unequal column widths

• if equal columns are needed, ensure that is ticked

• If unequal columns are needed remove the tick from

• adjust the width of the columns as needed

• click the OK button to complete the operation

Column Breaks

When Microsoft Word creates columns, it distributes the text approximately equally between the columns. On many occasions, information at the bottom of a column needs to be at the top of the next. To move the information to the top of the next column it is best to insert a column break (rather than pressing the Enter key a number of times).

To insert a column break:

• place the cursor at the start of the line that needs to be move to the top of the next column

• from the Insert menu select Break

• from the Break dialog box select Column Break

• click the OK button

Exercises

Download document to change a complete document to multiple column format.

Download document to change selected text to multiple column format.

Download document to use column breaks.