Divide Word documents into sections using horizontal lines

by Mary Ann Richardson | Jun 28, 2005 5:13:00 PM

Tags: Word processors, Microsoft Office, Mary Ann Richardson, horizontal line, Click OK, Horizontal Line, Microsoft Word, Borders Books & Music, Microsoft Office Suite Word Tips Newsletter

Takeaway: When you add horizontal lines to your Word document, you invariably make it easier to read and more visually appealing. Discover how simple it is to insert a horizontal line—whether it's one that Word provides or your own custom line—into your document.

A great way to make your Word document easier to read and more visually appealing is to separate sections in the document by inserting a graphical horizontal line. Word provides a number of attractive graphical horizontal lines from which you can choose.

Follow these steps to insert a horizontal line in your document:

1. Put your cursor in the document where you want to insert the horizontal line.
2. Go to Format | Borders And Shading.
3. On the Borders tab, click the Horizontal Line button.
4. Scroll through the options and select the desired line.
5. Click OK.

You can also insert your own custom horizontal lines. To insert a custom line, follow these steps:

1. Go to Format | Borders And Shading.
2. Click the Horizontal Line button.
3. Click the Import button.
4. Navigate to the file that contains the line you want to add and click the Add button to add the line to the Horizontal Line Gallery.
5. Click OK to add the line to the current document.

Horizontal lines are treated as any other graphic image; they can be copied, moved, resized, and colored like any other picture object. To format the line, right-click it and select Format Horizontal line to change the line's properties such as color, size, and alignment.

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