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: Space after a Table.

Space after a Table

Written by Allen Wyatt (last updated October 3, 2020)
This tip applies to Word 97, 2000, 2002, and 2003


1

Brian has set up the "body text" style in his document so that it only has "space after" and has zero "space before." This works great for laying out his document, except when it comes to tables. The paragraph following the table ends up being too close to the table, and Brian wants some space between the table and a "body text" paragraph following the table. He wonders if it is possible for Word to put "space after" a table.

Not really, in the sense of "space after" for a paragraph. This can cause some issues when it comes to vertical spacing after tables, as Brian points out. There are two things you can do to work around this problem.

First, you could define another style, perhaps called "body after table," which is based on the "body text" style. The only difference would be that the "body after table" style would have space before the paragraph, not just after. This style can then be applied to the first paragraph after any tables, with the "body text" style being used for the rest of the paragraphs.

The other option is to insert an extra row at the end of your tables. This row should have no text in it, and it should be formatted so that it has no borders. You can adjust the height of the row to reflect the amount of space you want between the main portion of the table and your following text.

WordTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Word training. (Microsoft Word is the most popular word processing software in the world.) This tip (3454) 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: Space after a Table.

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

Setting Numerator Height Spacing in the Equation Editor

The Equation Editor is a great way to add an professional-looking equation to your document. It allows you to modify many ...

Discover More

Making Use of Extra Labels

Got extra labels left over after printing a mail merge? Here's what you can do to put those labels to good use.

Discover More

Criteria-Based Counting in a Filtered Column

The filtering capabilities of Excel are excellent, providing you with great control over which records in a worksheet are ...

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)

Pulling Tables Back Into View

If you make structural changes to your table by adding new columns here and there, you could easily end up with a table ...

Discover More

Changing Table Cell Text Direction

When creating a table, you can turn the orientation of the text, within a cell, by ninety degrees in either direction ...

Discover More

Keeping Table Rows Together

When you create a table that extends beyond a single page, you may want to make sure that the information in a table row ...

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 seven minus 6?

2020-10-03 10:02:29

Wes Tracy

Allen,
I love these word tips, but you can actually set spacing after a table. Check out:
https://www.google.com/search?q=word+space+after+table&rlz=1C1SQJL_enUS915US916&oq=word+space+after+table&aqs=chrome..69i57j0l7.10911j1j15&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8


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.