Please Note: This article is written for users of the following Microsoft Word versions: 2007, 2010, 2013, and 2016. 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: Borders on Multiple Paragraphs with Differing Indents.
Dirk knows how to add borders around paragraphs, but when paragraphs contain indents (such as with a bulleted list), then the border is also indented which is not good looking at all. Dirk wonders how he can avoid this border indenting and keep his bulleted lists indented.
There are a few ways you can go about solving this problem. Unfortunately, none of those methods include adjusting paragraph or border formatting. (That would be too simple.) If you adjust the paragraph indent of the problem paragraphs—which does cause the border to be correct—it ends up moving your bullets all the way to the left margin. If you adjust the border formatting so that the left-border distance from the text is set to a larger or smaller value, it adjusts for all the paragraphs that are bordered, not just the paragraphs with the bulleted lists.
The only satisfactory method we've been able to come up with involves placing the paragraphs that you wanted bordered within a table cell, a text box, or a frame. Of the three, the frame approach is perhaps the best because the borders on the four sides of the frame can be independently formatted and (more importantly) the frame is treated as part of the actual text, not placed on separate layers as is a table and a text box. One drawback to using a frame is that it can't break across pages, but this may not be that big of a deal for short selections of 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 (12035) applies to Microsoft Word 2007, 2010, 2013, and 2016. You can find a version of this tip for the older menu interface of Word here: Borders on Multiple Paragraphs with Differing Indents.
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2020-07-15 13:27:21
JH
When pasting portions of a multilevel list into an existing frame in Word I am having similar results as Dirk, the frame is being subdivided at each indent for a new list level. Do you know of a fix or workaround?
2018-11-29 22:39:13
FlashGawdon
There are TWO other ways I can think of:
1. Create a page border (instead of a paragraph border) and apply it to a section of text. So for example: Go to Home Tab in th eribbon --> Paragraph --> Borders --> Borders and Shading --> Select the 'Page Border' Tab along the top --> Choose your box and choose apply to section on bottom RHS corner. Also twek the Option settings as required. BEWARE OF BUG: Each time you come to this window, Word erroneously defaults to 'Apply to Wole of Document' setting erronesly reporting the setting of your box. EG: If you have created a border for a section, next time you return to this screen it shows you that the box applies to the whole document.
2. Manufacture your own bulletpoint using tabs and Use Wingding font bulletpoints characters inside your border.
I feel the whole thing is a farce!!! Word should be sophisticated enough to allow this feature. I see this failing as a BUG!!! FIX IT MICROSOFT!!!
2018-11-29 22:24:12
FlashGawdon
Can you please disambiguate frames? In other words, specifically, what are you referring to by frames? That is, what is a frame? How do you create a frame? Thanks.
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Please Note:
This article is written for users of the following Microsoft Word versions: 2007, 2010, 2013, and 2016. 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: 
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