Setting Spacing for Radicals in the Equation Editor

Written by Allen Wyatt (last updated September 29, 2018)
This tip applies to Word 97, 2000, 2002, and 2003

A radical is often referred to as a "square root symbol," when, in fact, it is used for any types of roots (square, cubed, and so on). The Equation Editor allows you to specify a distance between the top of the radical and the top of any characters under the radical. You do this as follows:

Choose Spacing from the Format menu. The Equation Editor displays the Spacing dialog box.
Click on the Radical Gap box (you will need to scroll down some in the list of spacing settings). The Equation Editor changes the Spacing dialog box. (See Figure 1.)

Figure 1. The Spacing dialog box.

Enter a gap value in points.
Click on OK.

WordTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Word training. (Microsoft Word is the most popular word processing software in the world.) This tip (941) 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. Learn more about Allen...

MORE FROM ALLEN

Expiration Date for Excel Programs

If you use Excel to create a macro-based application, you may want to make sure that your programs cease working after a ...

Discover More

Checking for a List of Phrases in a Document

Once you start amassing quite a few documents, it is not uncommon to want to change phrases commonly used in those ...

Discover More

Word Tracks Changes to Changes

When you have Track Changes turned on for a document, Word remembers which editor made which changes. If this behavior ...

Discover More

Do More in Less Time! An easy-to-understand guide to the more advanced features available in the Microsoft 365 version of Word. Enhance the quality of your documents and boost productivity in any field with this in-depth resource. Complete your Word-related tasks more efficiently as you unlock lesser-known tools and learn to quickly access the features you need. Check out Microsoft 365 Word For Professionals For Dummies today!

More WordTips (menu)

Setting Prime Height Spacing 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

Choosing a Character Size in the Equation Editor

The Equation Editor is a handy tool, particularly for those who must include mathematical equations in their documents. ...

Discover More

Nudging an Equation

You can adjust where an equation is printed by moving it minute amounts in any direction.

Discover More

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.

Notify me about new comments ONLY FOR THIS TIP

Notify me about new comments ANYWHERE ON THIS SITE

Hide my email address

What is 0 + 9?

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.