Please Note: This article is written for users of the following Microsoft Word versions: 97, 2000, 2002, and 2003. If you are using a later version (Word 2007 or later), this tip may not work for you. For a version of this tip written specifically for later versions of Word, click here: Creating a Hanging Indent.

Creating a Hanging Indent

by Allen Wyatt
(last updated May 15, 2019)

"Hanging indent" is the typographical term for a paragraph in which the first line is not indented, but subsequent lines in the paragraph are. Typically, hanging indents are used for numbered and bulleted lists. To create a hanging indent in Word, use the following steps:

Position the insertion point in the paragraph in which you want the hanging indent.
Choose Paragraph from the Format menu. Word displays the Paragraph dialog box. (See Figure 1.)

Figure 1. The Paragraph dialog box.

In the Special drop-down list, choose Hanging. The By field changes to a value, most often one-half inch.
Adjust the By field to indicate how much you want each line in the paragraph (except the first) indented.
Click on OK.

Of course, Word provides shortcuts to create the most common application of hanging indents—numbered and bulleted lists. To apply these, you can simply use the appropriate Numbering or Bullets tools on the Formatting toolbar.

WordTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Word training. (Microsoft Word is the most popular word processing software in the world.) This tip (267) applies to Microsoft Word 97, 2000, 2002, and 2003. You can find a version of this tip for the ribbon interface of Word (Word 2007 and later) here: Creating a Hanging Indent.

Author Bio

Allen Wyatt

With more than 50 non-fiction books and numerous magazine articles to his credit, Allen Wyatt is an internationally recognized author. He is president of Sharon Parq Associates, a computer and publishing services company. Learn more about Allen...

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What is four less than 7?

2017-09-07 17:55:59

Reuben

so helpful and easy to understand, thank you so much!!

2016-09-22 17:39:48

Ali

Thank you sssooooooooo much Dave!! You rock!

2015-11-04 15:01:20

money

this does not work

2015-09-27 18:17:12

Sarah

LIFESAVER

2015-09-02 13:32:13

mel

Thanks Dave ! saved so much time

2015-06-03 06:17:05

Ann

Dave, you are a lifesaver. Your info on creating a hanging indent saved me. I had been pushing buttons and messing up things for an hour. Thanks again!

2015-05-27 06:00:09

Hlayisi Shivambu

Source so helpful indeed, wouldn't know where to start. Thank you

2015-05-07 12:33:05

dave

ctrl-t creates a hanging indent in Word 2013. Much faster than your method.

shift-ctrl-t removes hanging indent in Word 2013.

2015-04-27 19:58:12

hhiii

wow...idc

2015-03-17 15:25:37

Liz

Thanks for this. My brother totally messed me up on my citing last year and that made me fail so I'm glad this was here to help.

2015-03-03 21:25:48

james

This source really helped me thank you you all are truly excellent

2014-12-04 03:19:39

Amber

Super helpful and easy to follow! Thank you

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