Entering a Measurement in the Equation Editor

Written by Allen Wyatt (last updated April 29, 2023)
This tip applies to Word 97, 2000, 2002, and 2003


The Equation Editor uses a separate system of measurement than what you may have defined in Word. By default, the Equation Editor works with measurements in points for some settings and percentages of normal for others. (The term percentage of normal simply means that the Equation Editor has some internal value that it believes is "normal" for the setting. The measurement you enter is considered a percentage of that internal value.) You can enter measurements using different units by appending any of the abbreviations shown here:

Unit Abbreviation
Inches in
Centimeters cm
Millimeters mm
Points pt
Picas pi
Percentages of normal %

WordTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Word training. (Microsoft Word is the most popular word processing software in the world.) This tip (921) applies to Microsoft Word 97, 2000, 2002, and 2003.

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. ...

MORE FROM ALLEN

Controlling How Body Text is Displayed

When working in Outline view, you can control how Word displays the body text under each heading. You can specify that ...

Discover More

Worksheet Events

You can create macros that are automatically executed whenever certain events occur within a worksheet. This tip details ...

Discover More

Looking Backward through a Data Table

Sometimes you need to look backward, through the information above your formula, to find the data you need. This can be ...

Discover More

Do More in Less Time! Are you ready to harness the full power of Word 2013 to create professional documents? In this comprehensive guide you'll learn the skills and techniques for efficiently building the documents you need for your professional and your personal life. Check out Word 2013 In Depth today!

More WordTips (menu)

Choosing What You See in the Equation Editor

Sometimes it can be helpful to see where non-printing characters are located. Here's how to view non-printing characters ...

Discover More

Setting Fraction Bar Thickness in the Equation Editor

The Equation Editor is a great tool for easily creating fancy-looking equations in your document. You can even control ...

Discover More

Adding Lines in an Equation Editor Matrix

If you are using matrices in your equations, you can add lines to a matrix by applying this tip.

Discover More
Subscribe

FREE SERVICE: Get tips like this every week in WordTips, a free productivity newsletter. Enter your address and click "Subscribe."

View most recent newsletter.

Comments

If you would like to add an image to your comment (not an avatar, but an image to help in making the point of your comment), include the characters [{fig}] (all 7 characters, in the sequence shown) in your comment text. You’ll be prompted to upload your image when you submit the comment. Maximum image size is 6Mpixels. Images larger than 600px wide or 1000px tall will be reduced. Up to three images may be included in a comment. All images are subject to review. Commenting privileges may be curtailed if inappropriate images are posted.

What is one more than 2?

There are currently no comments for this tip. (Be the first to leave your comment—just use the simple form above!)


This Site

Got a version of Word that uses the menu interface (Word 97, Word 2000, Word 2002, or Word 2003)? This site is for you! If you use a later version of Word, visit our WordTips site focusing on the ribbon interface.

Videos
Subscribe

FREE SERVICE: Get tips like this every week in WordTips, a free productivity newsletter. Enter your address and click "Subscribe."

(Your e-mail address is not shared with anyone, ever.)

View the most recent newsletter.