Creating an index for your document is an easy task with Word's automatic manager. You can create an index from multiple documents, for a range of pages, or almost anything you could need with the program's flexibility. Read the following articles to learn how to set up and insert an index in Word.

Tips, Tricks, and Answers

The following articles are available for the 'Indexes' topic. Click the article''s title (shown in bold) to see the associated article.

   Adding Hyperlinks to an Index
Word provides a full set of tools you can use to generate an index for your document. One thing you can't do, however, is add hyperlinks to the page numbers in an index. This tip looks at possible solutions to this shortcoming.

   Adding Quoted Words to an Index
It is not unusual to need to convert one notation in a document into another entirely different notation. For instance, you may need to convert words or phrases surrounded by quote marks into words that are included in an index for the document. This may appear difficult but can be rather easily accomplished by using a macro.

   Chapter Numbers in Indexes and TOAs
Word allows you to define prefixes for page numbers. These are often used for chapter or section numbers in a large document. Getting these prefixes to appear in all the places you want them can, at times, be tricky. This tip provides a step-by-step way to make sure they are included.

   Creating a Normal Index
Adding an index to a document is an easy task. There are a couple of ways you can do it, as described in this tip.

   Creating a Single Index from Multiple Documents
When dealing with large projects, it is not uncommon to break the project into multiple documents. When it comes time to generate an index for those multiple documents, you may be at a loss as to how to proceed. Fortunately, Word provides two ways you can get the unified index you desire.

   Creating an Index Entry
In order to create an index, you first need to create the entries that will be used to compile the index. Here's how you do that.

   Creating an Index Entry for a Range of Pages
Putting together an index for your documents can be challenging, but Word provides some great tools to make the task easier. If you want to create index entries that span a range of pages, you need to do it using bookmarks, as described in this tip.

   Cross-Referencing Index Entries
You've probably seen an index where an entry says something like 'Obsidian: See igneous rock.' This sort of cross-reference is easy to create using the indexing tools that Word provides.

   Deleting Index Entries
When you construct an index you need to insert all sorts of index fields throughout your document. If you want to later remove an index entry, you need to delete the field for that entry, as described here.

   Formatting Issues with Indexing Levels
When you insert an index in a document, Word automatically takes care of formatting that index. What if the index levels don't look like you want them to look, though? Here's how to get exactly the look you want.

   Improper Index Page Numbers
Adding an index to a document can be a nice finishing touch, particularly if the document is a long one. What happens if the page numbers in the index are not the correct page numbers, though?

   Improper Index References
When indexing a document, you may get some funny results once in a while. If you get single index entries when you were expecting multiple ones, the reason could be because of the way you have your pages numbered.

   Including Section Numbers in an Index
When you use Word to create your index, you'll normally only include a page number in the index. If you want to create an index that includes section numbers, Word can handle it using the two methods described in this tip.

   Inconsistent Formatting in an Index
When indexing a document, you may find that some of your index entries aren't formatted the same as your other index entries. This can be caused by a couple of different conditions as described in this tip.

   Indexing a Range of Pages
After you get your document ready for indexing by inserting index fields throughout it, you may want to index only a portion of the whole. You can do this by using the INDEX field with an optional switch that limits the index to a range of text.

   Indexing Based on a Range of Letters
Word provides many options for creating indexes. One option allows you to specify that the index contain only entries that begin with a range of letters that you define.

   Multiple Indexes in a Document
Adding a single index to a document is fairly easy. What if you want to add multiple indexes, however? And what if you want one of those indexes to only apply to a particular section of the document? There are a couple of ways you can approach this problem.

   Printing Index Field Codes
Word allows you to configure what you see so that field codes are visible instead of the results of those field codes. However, even though you can see all your field codes, you won't be able to print out the XE field codes unless you take an additional step not necessary for other field codes.

   Putting Bold Words in an Index
There are several ways you can create an index in Word, but the first step is always to figure out what should go in the index. If you have a collection of words that are defined by a particular characteristic (such as being bold), then it doesn't take much to put all those words into your index.

   Putting Your Index after Your Endnotes
Endnotes are supposed to be at the end of your document, right? Not necessarily. You may want something else at the end, such as an index. Here's how to make sure that your endnotes end up where you want them.

   Specifying a Collating Sequence for Indexes
The indexing feature provided by Word can be a great help, but in some situations, it may not sort your index as you desire. Here's a way for you to override how Word collates your index.

   Specifying an Index Page-Range Separator
When generating an index, Word normally uses a dash to indicate page ranges. You can change the character used for these ranges by using a switch in the index field.

   Specifying Index Section Dividers
When adding an index to your document, you can use one of the available field switches to specify how the index should be divided up. This tip details your section-dividing options.

   Using Subentries in an AutoMark File
If you have a large document and need to create a complicated index, an AutoMark file can make your life much easier. This tip explains what the file is for and how to use it to set up both index entries and subentries.