In this screen cast, I will explain how to quickly and easily make custom tabs and indents using the horizontal ruler in Microsoft Word on a Mac. Opening multiple tabs on your Mac is extremely helpful when doing research, online shopping, or working on a project. To quickly open another link in a new tab while keeping your existing ones. Select one or more paragraphs. If you want to select the entire document, choose Edit→Select All from the menu bar or press Command-A. Click the Tabs menu and choose one of the five tab stops. Click in the horizontal ruler wherever you want a tab stop. Learn how to add tabs in documents in Microsoft Word In this video tutorial we will show you how to set tabs in word. Open the word document you want to edit. On your Mac, open a document. For example, open a document in the TextEdit app. In the document, click the New Tab button in the tab bar or choose File New Tab (if available). If you don't see the tab bar, choose View Show Tab Bar. Save the document. Its name appears as the tab name.
This article is based on legacy software.
Tabs allow you to position text exactly where you would like it. To avoid problems with text alignment, use tabs rather than spaces. The default tab settings for Microsoft Word are every half-inch. If you do not like the Word settings, you can set your own tabs.
Tab Types
Tabs come in different types which are defined by the way text aligns with the tab. The following table explains the different tab types.
| Tab Type | Icon | Purpose |
|---|---|---|
| Left (Normal) | With the Left tab, text will begin at the tab position and continue to the right of the tab. | |
| Right | With the Right tab, text will end at the tab and flow to the left. | |
| Center | The Center tab works similar to centering a line of text but instead of centering between margins, text is centered at the tab location. | |
| Decimal | The Decimal tab is used to align numbers and text with a period. This is useful for a group of numbers or a list of instructions. | |
| Bar | The Bar tab is used to add a vertical line at that position. This could be used when you want to set off some text. |
Setting a tab does not automatically align your text. You still have to press [Tab] at the appropriate places.
Working with Tabs from the Ruler
Working with tabs using the Ruler option is a quick and easy way to set and adjust tabs. The Ruler options allow you to set, move, delete, or change tabs.
Working with Tabs from the Ruler: Setting Tabs
Select the paragraph(s) that will receive new tab settings
Click the TAB TYPE icon
The Tab Type pull-down menu appears.
NOTE: For definitions of the different tab types, refer to Tab Types above.Select the desired tab type
On the Ruler, click where you want the tab
NOTE: Be sure to click below any numbers or dash marks.
Working with Tabs from the Ruler: Changing Tab Type
To move a tab, click and drag it to the desired position on the ruler.
To change the tab type, you can either delete the tab and add a new tab of the correct type or you can use the Tabs dialog box.
Working with Tabs from the Tabs Dialog Box
The Tabs dialog box allows you to adjust the placement and type of tab. Although the Ruler option is a quicker way to adjust tabs, the dialog box allows you to use leaders and enter specific tab locations.
In the Tabs dialog box, you can set leaders for the tabs. Leaders are lines (solid, dashed, or dotted) that appear in the blank space created by a tab. The most common use for a leader is in a table of contents where a dotted line leads up to the page number. Leaders guide the reader's eye across the page.
To access the Tabs dialog box
Select the paragraph(s) that will receive new tab settings
Click the TAB TYPE icon
The Tab Type pull-down menu appears.Select Tabs...
The Tabs dialog box appears.
Working with Tabs from the Tabs Dialog Box: Setting Tabs
Access the Tabs dialog box
In the Tab stop position text box, type the desired value (in inches)
In the Alignment section, select the desired alignment
(Optional) In the Leader section, select the desired leader
Click SET
To set additional tabs, repeat steps 2-5
After all tabs have been set, click OK
Working with Tabs from the Tabs Dialog Box: Moving Tabs
Moving tabs in the Tabs dialog box involves adding a new tab and deleting the old one.
Mailings Tab In Word For Mac
Access the Tabs dialog box
In the Tab stop position scroll box, select the desired tab
Click CLEAR
In the Tab stop position text box, type the new tab location
Adjust the tab alignment and leader if necessary
Click SET
Click OK
Working with Tabs from the Ruler: Changing Tab Type
To move a tab, click and drag it to the desired position on the ruler.
To change the tab type, you can either delete the tab and add a new tab of the correct type or you can use the Tabs dialog box.
Working with Tabs from the Tabs Dialog Box
The Tabs dialog box allows you to adjust the placement and type of tab. Although the Ruler option is a quicker way to adjust tabs, the dialog box allows you to use leaders and enter specific tab locations.
In the Tabs dialog box, you can set leaders for the tabs. Leaders are lines (solid, dashed, or dotted) that appear in the blank space created by a tab. The most common use for a leader is in a table of contents where a dotted line leads up to the page number. Leaders guide the reader's eye across the page.
To access the Tabs dialog box
Select the paragraph(s) that will receive new tab settings
Click the TAB TYPE icon
The Tab Type pull-down menu appears.Select Tabs...
The Tabs dialog box appears.
Working with Tabs from the Tabs Dialog Box: Setting Tabs
Access the Tabs dialog box
In the Tab stop position text box, type the desired value (in inches)
In the Alignment section, select the desired alignment
(Optional) In the Leader section, select the desired leader
Click SET
To set additional tabs, repeat steps 2-5
After all tabs have been set, click OK
Working with Tabs from the Tabs Dialog Box: Moving Tabs
Moving tabs in the Tabs dialog box involves adding a new tab and deleting the old one.
Mailings Tab In Word For Mac
Access the Tabs dialog box
In the Tab stop position scroll box, select the desired tab
Click CLEAR
In the Tab stop position text box, type the new tab location
Adjust the tab alignment and leader if necessary
Click SET
Click OK
Setting Tabs In Word For Mac
Working with Tabs from the Tabs Dialog Box: Deleting Tabs
Place the insertion point within the paragraph with the tab settings you want to delete
Access the Tabs dialog box
From the Tab stop position scroll box, select the tab to be deleted
Click CLEAR
HINT: To delete all tabs, click CLEAR ALLTo delete other tabs, repeat steps 3-4
Click OK
Working with Tabs from the Tabs Dialog Box: Changing Tab Type
Select the desired paragraph(s) whose tab settings you want to change
Access the Tabs dialog box
From the Tab stop position scroll box, select the tab to be changed
In the Alignment section, select the new tab type
NOTE: Depending on the text alignment, the tab position may need to be adjusted. For more information, refer to Moving Tabs above.Click SET
To change other tabs, repeat steps 3-5
Click OK
The old-fashioned idea of a basic tab stop is that when you press the Tab key, the cursor jumps to the next tab stop that's set on the ruler and then you start typing. In Office 2011 for Mac, this kind of tab stop is the left tab stop. These days, tabs do a lot more than just act as a position to stop the cursor.
Tabs work at the paragraph level; when you set tab stops, they work with the currently selected paragraphs. You can select an entire document before you set tabs if you want your tab stops to work for the whole thing. The actual steps to set a tab stop are simple:
Select one or more paragraphs.
If you want to select the entire document, choose Edit→Select All from the menu bar or press Command-A.
Click the Tabs menu and choose one of the five tab stops.
Click in the horizontal ruler wherever you want a tab stop.
Each time you click, the symbol for the tab stop you chose is placed into the ruler.
When you work with tabs, be sure to toggle paragraph marks on and off with the Show All Non-Printing Characters button on the Standard toolbar. This button is simply labeled Show on the toolbar. When paragraph marks are turned on, you see an arrow pointing to the right appear in the text whenever you press the Tab key.
Your paragraph behaves differently for each of the five kinds of tab stops. Here are descriptions of each kind of tab stop:
Left: By default, each document has a left tab stop every 1/2 inch, unless you click in the ruler to add your own stops.
Center: After you set a center tab stop, press the Tab key to move to the stop. When you start typing, your text is centered below the tab stop.
Right: After you set a right tab stop, press the Tab key to move to the right tab stop and start typing. Use a right tab to right-align text, perhaps when making a column.
Decimal: As the name implies, use this tab stop when you're typing decimal numbers. Word lines up the numbers at the decimal point. Even if you don't type an actual decimal point, Word assumes the decimal point.
Bar: Danger: Using a bar tab stop may cause inebriation. Okay, not really. A bar tab stop is much the same as a left tab stop, except Word puts a vertical bar at the tab stop. After you set a bar stop and start typing, your text is to the right of the bar.
