Please Note: This article is written for users of the following Microsoft Word versions: 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, 2021, and Word in Microsoft 365. If you are using an earlier version (Word 2003 or earlier), this tip may not work for you. For a version of this tip written specifically for earlier versions of Word, click here: Automatic Periods after a Caption.

Automatic Periods after a Caption

Written by Allen Wyatt (last updated April 16, 2022)
This tip applies to Word 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, 2021, and Word in Microsoft 365


Ruchika is trying to add a period to the caption label used for tables. She wants her table caption to look like this: "Table 1.1. Example Table". She can configure the caption tool to use a period between the chapter number and the item number (1.1), but she can't find a way to put the period after the digits. Ruchika wonders if there is an automatic way to add the last period.

There is no way to add that second period that we can find. That means that if you must have the period, the only way to get it is to add it manually or (if you have enough captions to justify doing so) creating a macro to add the period.

You may want to look at the requirement to have the second period. Is it really necessary? If the requirement is specified by a professional organization or a publisher, you may want to talk with your contacts to see if it is possible to get the requirement relaxed so you can use the caption tool without the need for modification.

WordTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Word training. (Microsoft Word is the most popular word processing software in the world.) This tip (8474) applies to Microsoft Word 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, 2021, and Word in Microsoft 365. You can find a version of this tip for the older menu interface of Word here: Automatic Periods after a Caption.

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

Determining a Value of a Cell

Cells can store all sorts of information that can be formatted and displayed in a myriad of ways. If you want to quickly ...

Discover More

Spelling Errors Resulting from Erroneous Spaces

Spelling errors can result from improperly ordering letters in a word, or from adding spaces where they shouldn't be. ...

Discover More

Incomplete and Corrupt Sorting

Using the sorting tools, on the toolbar, may result in some unwanted results, such as jumbled data. If this happens to ...

Discover More

The First and Last Word on Word! Bestselling For Dummies author Dan Gookin puts his usual fun and friendly candor back to work to show you how to navigate Word 2019. Spend more time working and less time trying to figure it all out! Check out Word 2019 For Dummies today!

More WordTips (ribbon)

Adding Captions

Need to add a caption after a document element such as a figure or table? You can add and format one manually, or you can ...

Discover More

Changing Caption Numbering Styles

Using Word's captioning feature can be a great boon for automatically numbering certain elements in your documents. It ...

Discover More

Changing Existing Captions

Word allows you to automatically create captions for various elements of your document, such as figures and tables. These ...

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 9 + 0?

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 ribbon interface (Word 2007 or later)? This site is for you! If you use an earlier version of Word, visit our WordTips site focusing on the menu 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.