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: Two-Line Headings in a TOC.
Written by Allen Wyatt (last updated January 8, 2022)
This tip applies to Word 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, 2019, 2021, and Word in Microsoft 365
Nilda generates Tables of Contents all the time in Word. She uses the Mark Entry feature to mark what should go in each Table of Contents. There are times when she may have a section title that consists of two lines separated by a hard return. When she marks the title as a single TOC entry, it doesn't appear in the generated TOC, and Nilda wonders why this is the case.
The reason is intrinsic to how Word puts together its TOCs. While a TC field (used to mark TOC entries) can presumably include a paragraph break, Word ignores everything after that break when it composes the TOC from those fields.
The solution is to get rid of the paragraph break. You have two options. First, you could edit your TC field contents so that the paragraph break is not included in the field. Second, you could actually modify your document so that the two lines of your heading are separated by a soft return (Shift+Enter) instead of a hard return (Enter).
If you choose the second route, then when Word compiles the TOC it will include the entire heading as a single entity, automatically replacing the soft return with a space.
A good place to find some great ideas on TOCs in Word is at this page, created by Word MVP Suzanne Barnhill:
http://wordfaqs.mvps.org/TOCTips.htm
WordTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Word training. (Microsoft Word is the most popular word processing software in the world.) This tip (13231) 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: Two-Line Headings in a TOC.
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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:
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