Hello. I have just written a book (well, almost) that uses 1, 1.1, 1.1.1, 1.1.1.1 style headings, and they're working beautifully thanks to Suzanne Barnhill's document on this topic that I have unfortunately misplaced. I now want to change the top headings, the ones that say, e.g. 1 Introduction, 2 Theory and Previous Findings, etc. to insert the word 'Chapter', e.g. Chapter 1: Introduction, Chapter 2: Theory and Previous Findings, etc.



So my first question is: How can I do that?

But also: How can I do that without all my lower-level headings 'inheriting' the word 'Chapter', e.g. Chapter 1: A Quick Overview when all I want is 1.1 A Quick Overview without the word 'Chapter'?

And: How can I prevent this from being inherited by all future documents, such as articles I want to write with the same 1, 1.1, 1.1.1, 1.1.1.1 headings but without the word 'Chapter' appearing as part of the top-level headings, which only makes sense in books, not articles?

Click in the first Heading 1 paragraph of your document. Click Home tab | Multilevel List | Define New Multilevel List (note that "define new" is misleading, because the same command should be used when you edit a multilevel list). In the multilevel list dialog box, type in Chapter followed by a space before the level 1 number. When you are done, click OK to exit the dialog box. The changes you make only apply to the active document.

For more on multilevel lists in general, take a look at Shauna Kelly's article at http://shaunakelly.com/word/numberin...g20072010.html.

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Stefan Blom
Microsoft Word MVP

Microsoft 365 apps for business
Windows 11 Professional

Yes, that worked beautifully. Many thanks!

When I checked with a new document, though, I was surprised to find that not only did my revised heading styles not carry over to that (as you said it would not), but that the 1, 1.1, 1.1.1, 1.1.1.1 style didn't carry over, either. So how do I transfer that style over when I do want to? (So far, come to think of it, my method has been to make a copy of a document where I have that style and delete all the text in it.)

Two ways:

Simple way - put it in a template (create a template based on you document with the style in it if you wish). You do this by using SaveAs and saving as a template, not by renaming the document with a different extension in Windows.

See Templates in Microsoft Word. Note: you do not want to use this template to replace your normal template. You could have the style in your normal template if you want.

Then, when you want this style set, create a new document based on the template. This is much cleaner and less risky than using SaveAs from a document every time. This method is working with Word and its tools to achieve your result rather than working around them or against them.

More difficult way - create a stylesheet Add-In. See A Global StyleSheet in Microsoft Word? I use this method for styles I want to import into a number of different documents on an add-hoc and sometimes after-the-fact basis. This requires macros and a solid understanding of how your styles work together.