3.10: Alignment, Justification, and Indentation
- Page ID
- 46457
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- Change alignment of text.
Alignment
To align or justify text, move your cursor into the paragraph you want to change, then click the left-align, right-align, centered, or justify buttons.
![A microsoft word document is open zoomed in specifically on the ribbon section. On the close up of the ribbon section, the four alignment options are highlighted by a green box.](https://biz.libretexts.org/@api/deki/files/24848/alignribbon.png?revision=1)
Alignment is how text flows in relation to the rest of the page (or column, table cell, text box, etc.). There are four main alignments: left, right, center, and justified.
- Left-aligned text is text that is aligned with a left edge. You can also left-align your text with the shortcut Ctrl+L (Cmnd+L).
- Right-aligned text is text that is aligned with a right edge. You can also right-align your text with the shortcut Ctrl+R (Cmnd+R).
- Centered text is text that is centered between two edges. You can also center-align your text with the shortcut Ctrl+E (Cmnd+E).
Left-aligned | Centered | Right-aligned |
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![]() | ![]() | ![]() |
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Justification controls the spacing between words. A justified text increases the space between words to fill the entire line so that it is aligned with both the left and right edges. You can also center-align your text with the shortcut Ctrl+J (Cmnd+J).
![]() Unjustified text | ![]() Justified text |
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You can also change the alignment and justification settings in the paragraph dialog box.
Practice Question
Paragraph Dialog Box: Justification and Alignment
Open the paragraph dialog box by clicking the small arrow icon in the bottom-right corner of the Paragraph group.
![A microsoft word document is open zoomed in on the ribbon bar. A green arrow is pointing at paragraph dialog box which has already been surrounded by a green box.](https://biz.libretexts.org/@api/deki/files/24865/paragraphdialogbox.png?revision=1)
The dropdown menu to change the alignment is near the top of the dialog box.
![The dialog box has been zoomed in on with a green box around the alignment portion of the options.](https://biz.libretexts.org/@api/deki/files/24867/paragraphdialogbox-alignment2.png?revision=1)
Indentation
In many documents, indenting is a good way to distinguish the start of a new paragraph, especially when there is no paragraph spacing.
To indent, hit the Tab key once on your keyboard at the start of a paragraph.
![A paragraph of text that has been indented.](https://biz.libretexts.org/@api/deki/files/24870/Screen-Shot-2017-05-05-at-9.50.08-AM.png?revision=1)
For more control over indentation settings, use the paragraph dialog box.
Paragraph Dialog Box: Indentation
Open the paragraph dialog box by clicking the small arrow icon in the bottom-right corner of the Paragraph group.
![A microsoft word document is open zoomed in on the ribbon bar. A green arrow is pointing at paragraph dialog box which has already been surrounded by a green box.](https://biz.libretexts.org/@api/deki/files/24865/paragraphdialogbox.png?revision=1)
The indentation section is toward the middle of the dialog box.
![The dialog box has been zoomed in on with a green box around the indentation portion of the options.](https://biz.libretexts.org/@api/deki/files/24873/paragraphdialogbox-indent.png?revision=1)
The Left and Right settings indent the entire paragraph to the left and right.
Indentation Comparison |
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![]() Without indentation |
![]() With 1-inch indentation on left and right sides |
The Special dropdown menu allows you to choose to indent the first line of the paragraph or to create a hanging indent. Upon choosing First or Hanging, another field will appear to let you choose how big the first line or hanging indent will be.
![Zoom in on the special dropdown menu.](https://biz.libretexts.org/@api/deki/files/24876/Screen-Shot-2017-05-05-at-10.04.06-AM.png?revision=1)
![]() Hanging indent | ![]() First line indent |
Practice Question
Contributors and Attributions
- Align Left. Authored by: Arthur Shlain. Located at: https://thenounproject.com/term/align-left/60845/. License: CC BY: Attribution
- Align Center. Authored by: Arthur Shlain. Located at: https://thenounproject.com/term/align-center/60844/. License: CC BY: Attribution
- Align Right. Authored by: Arthur Shlain. Located at: https://thenounproject.com/term/align-right/60847/. License: CC BY: Attribution
- Justify Text. Authored by: Arthur Shlain. Located at: https://thenounproject.com/term/justify-text/60846/. License: CC BY: Attribution
- Alignment and Line Spacing. Authored by: Lumen Learning. License: CC BY: Attribution