Written by Allen Wyatt (last updated January 11, 2025)
This tip applies to Word 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, 2021, 2024, and Word in Microsoft 365
When a font is designed, a certain amount of space is designated for inter-character spacing. This spacing determines how close adjacent characters are to each other. Unfortunately, not all characters appear the same width when read on a printed page. Depending on the characters, this can cause an illusion that two characters are spaced too far apart, when in reality they follow the standard spacing conventions for the typeface. This problem normally appears when the left character in a pair has a stroke (a line) that travels diagonally from left to right.
Kerning is a typographical term describing the process of moving letters closer together, in an effort to overcome the illusion of too much space between letters. This makes the text both more appealing and more readable. In Word, kerning can be adjusted either automatically or manually. To change kerning automatically, perform the following steps:
Figure 1. The Advanced tab of the Font dialog box.
In most cases, this type of kerning will be acceptable. There may be instances, however, when you want to manually adjust the kerning between two characters. For instance, you might want to create some special effect for the characters. In these cases, you can manually adjust kerning by following these steps:
WordTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Word training. (Microsoft Word is the most popular word processing software in the world.) This tip (12516) applies to Microsoft Word 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, 2021, 2024, and Word in Microsoft 365. You can find a version of this tip for the older menu interface of Word here: Changing Kerning.
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