Please Note: This article is written for users of the following Microsoft Word versions: 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, 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: Inserting a Bullet.

Inserting a Bullet

Written by Allen Wyatt (last updated February 9, 2019)
This tip applies to Word 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, and Word in Microsoft 365


2

It is not unusual to create bulleted lists within a document. What if you want to place a bullet within the middle of a sentence, however? There are two ways you can do this in Word. First, you can follow these steps:

  1. Position the insertion point where you want the bullet to appear.
  2. Choose Symbol from the Insert menu. Word displays the Symbol dialog box. (To display the dialog box, display the Insert tab of the ribbon, click Symbol (in the Symbols group), and then click More Symbols.) (See Figure 1.)
  3. Figure 1. The Symbol dialog box.

  4. Use the Font drop-down list to select the font you want to use for the bullet.
  5. Double-click on the bullet character you want inserted.
  6. Click on Close.

Another option for inserting a bullet is to hold down the Alt key as you type 0183 on the numeric keypad. This inserts a small round bullet at the insertion point. If you are a laptop user, you may not have the numeric keypad available. There are key combinations to press to create the equivalent of a PC numeric keypad. The following web page is a good place to start on researching some of these key combinations:

https://fsymbols.com/keyboard/windows/alt-codes/laptop/

WordTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Word training. (Microsoft Word is the most popular word processing software in the world.) This tip (12492) applies to Microsoft Word 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, and Word in Microsoft 365. You can find a version of this tip for the older menu interface of Word here: Inserting a Bullet.

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

Running Macros on Hidden Worksheets

Excel allows you to hide worksheets so that they aren't visible to those using your workbook. Hiding worksheets has a ...

Discover More

Adding Data Labels to Your Chart

Adding labels to a chart can make the information presented in the chart more understandable. Excel allows you to add ...

Discover More

Finding a Cell Reference

Want to know what the reference address is for a particular cell in a table? Word won't tell you, but you can use a macro ...

Discover More

Create Custom Apps with VBA! Discover how to extend the capabilities of Office 2013 (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, and Access) with VBA programming, using it for writing macros, automating Office applications, and creating custom applications. Check out Mastering VBA for Office 2013 today!

More WordTips (ribbon)

Different Ways of Inserting Dates

Word provides a couple of different ways you can insert the current date into a document. Which method should you choose? ...

Discover More

Breaking Into Sentences

Macros allow you to easily extend what you can do with Word. If you have a common editing task, that task can often be ...

Discover More

Checking for Matching Parentheses

There are lots of little "gotchas" that can make the difference between a finished document and a polished document. One ...

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 nine more than 7?

2019-02-09 13:00:20

Allan

Alt+7 will also apply a bullet. You might like it better than Alt+0183.


2019-02-09 10:26:06

Lou B

My preferred keyboard bullet is ALT+0149. It's bigger than the ALT+0183.


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.