Manually inserting individual footnotes and endnotes in Word is relatively straightforward: type a superscript number at the end of the sentence related to the note and then scroll to the bottom of the page, section, or document to type your note’s text. But manually inserting notes can get tricky if your document is more than a couple of pages long or has a lot of notes because you also have to manually update number sequencing and text placement as notes are added or deleted. That’s when Word’s footnote and endnote tool really comes in handy. The tool automatically maintains sequential note numbers, creates space for endnotes at the end of the document or section, and makes sure that your footnotes stay with their associated body content—even if that content moves to an entirely different page.
In Chicago Manual of Style, some students are required to have the Bibliography after the Endnotes section. Unfortunately, MS Word gives students more Endnote separator lines through the Bibliography pages (at the top of those pages), even after the first Endnote Separator Line is deleted per the instructions above.
Best of all, the tool is easy to use. This tutorial is also available as a YouTube video, which you can watch on or in the embedded video player at the end of this tutorial. How to Insert Footnotes and Endnotes in Microsoft Word 1. Place your cursor where the superscript number for the first note should appear. Select the References tab in the Ribbon. Select the dialog box launcher in the Footnotes group. Select Footnotes or Endnotes and choose the note’s designated location in the Footnote and Endnote dialog box.
Select Insert to create the first note. After Word creates the superscript number, your cursor will automatically move to the note location designated in the Footnote and Endnote dialog box. Write the note text. Double click on the number before the note to return to the location of the corresponding superscript number in the body content.
Place your cursor where the superscript number for the next note should appear and then select Insert Footnote or Insert Endnote in the Footnotes group to insert the next note. Here are a few things to consider when using Word’s footnote and endnote tool:.
You can use footnotes and endnotes in the same document. If you choose to use both, the first type inserted will be assigned superscript numbers and the second type inserted will be assigned superscript letters; however, all of these options can be changed in the Footnote and Endnote dialog box. If you move the text connected to footnotes or endnotes, the sequencing of the superscript numbers (or letters) and the notes themselves will be automatically updated. If you add or delete footnotes or endnotes between existing notes, the sequencing of the superscript numbers (or letters) and the notes themselves will be automatically updated. Further Reading.