How to Create a Numbered or Bulleted List in Microsoft Word

Contributor

By eHow Contributing Writer

Article Rating:

(11 Ratings)

Lists provide a great way to present a lot of information in an easy-to-understand format. Two types of lists are commonly used: bulleted and numbered.

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

Microsoft Word

Step 1

Type the text that you want in the list and press the Enter key (PC) or Return key (Macintosh) after each item.
Step 2

Select the text you want in the list.
Step 3

Go to the Format menu and select Bullets and Numbering. The Bullets and Numbering window opens.
Step 4

Select the Bulleted or Numbered tab in the upper-left corner of the window.
Step 5

Select one bullet or number style from the choices presented.
Step 6

Select the Customize button if you want to further customize the bullet or number symbols.
Step 7

Select the bullet or number's size, shape and position, as well as the text position and the type of font you want to use for the symbol. You can also select a start number for a numbered list.
Step 8

Select a new bullet character by clicking the Bullet button, which offers numerous style choices. Pick a font from the menu, and then select a new symbol.

Tips & Warnings

If you want a simple list, without custom formatting, highlight the list text and press the Bullet or Number button in the Formatting toolbar at the top of Microsoft Word's document window. Or press the button, and then type your list.
Use bulleted lists when the sequence of tasks is not important and you just want to draw attention to specific items. Use numbered lists when you want readers to do things sequentially. Remember to use parallel grammatical construction with your list items. (All complete sentences, all noun phrases, all gerund phrases, and so on.)
On the Numbering tab, you can choose to restart numbering if this is a new list, or continue numbering if numbers in your list are separated by text or graphics.

Who Can Help Sponsored