Maths symbols in Word (Mac)

Minus Symbol In Word For Macro
Plus Minus Symbol In Word

Saturday, 03 January 2009 | 2 Comments

Some of the methods in this article do not work in Microsot Word for Mac 2011. Please see the updated post Mathematical Symbols in Word for Mac for a screencast describing the current best method (in my opinion).

Creating a maths worksheet in Microsoft Word without using the proper symbols does not present well – I’m sure you’ve seen 2 * 2 = 4 or 2 × 2 = 4 rather than 2 × 2 = 4. My previous post, Maths symbols in Word is one of the most popular on this site. In that post, I gave shortcuts for inserting mathematical symbols into Word – the post was specific to the Windows version of Word. As I’ve been a Mac user for a year, it’s time to make a similar post for Mac users.

Unfortunately the Mac is not as nice as a Windows machine for inserting symbols using the keyboard (rather than the mouse) which I prefer as it’s quicker. The multiplication symbol, for one, is not accessible by a keyboard shortcut.

Keyboard shortcuts

The most commonly used ones include ¢ (Alt+4), — (em dash, Alt+Shift+Hyphen), and ˚ (degree symbol, Alt+K). If you type in accent-heavy languages like Spanish or French, the Alt key should be.

On the Mac, there are a few keyboard shortcuts by pressing and holding the Option/Alt key (⌥) whilst pressing another character on the keyboard. Or a combination of the Option/Alt key and the Shift key (⇧).

For example, the division symbol (÷) is ⌥ and /.
The degree symbol (°) is ⇧ and ⌥ and 8.

Minus Symbol In Word For Macro

As Office-Watch reader, Peter C. Noted in an email to us “I cannot seem to access symbols not visible in the panel, has Microsoft intentionally restricted the range of non-keyboard characters and symbols available on the Mac version of Word? The Word for Mac.
Question: Q: x bar (symbol for mean) I'm a somewhat new mac user, but I've been around word processing programs for years. I cannot find where the symbol for mean, x bar (the x with the line over it) is in Pages, (or Word for that matter).

See the download below for a cheat sheet with more shortcuts.

Word’s Object Palette

In Word 2008 for Mac (I think the previous version has this as well) open the Toolbox. At the top there are tabs for various parts of the Toolbox. The second one is the Object Palette (click thumbnail below for a larger view). Then, select the copyright symbol (©) which takes you to a palette of symbols. Clicking a symbol here will insert it into your documents.

Plus Minus Symbol In Word

Fireamp for mac. This is the quickest way I can find to insert a multiplication symbol without using more complex methods described below.

AutoCorrect

Have you noticed how Word automagically corrects common spelling mistakes? That’s called AutoCorrect, and I think this might be the best way to insert commonly used symbols that don’t have a keyboard shortcut.

I’ll use the multiplication symbol as an example. First, you will need to use the previous method to insert a multiplication symbol into a new document. Then, copy that symbol to the clipboard. From the Tools menu select AutoCorrect. Make sure “Replace text as you type” is selected. In the “Replace:” field type an uncommon phrase that will be replaced with the multiplication symbol. I use &times, because it’s very similar to how you insert symbols in HTML (the language for writing web pages) which I am familiar with. In the “With:” field paste the multiplication symbol you copied earlier (i.e. click in the field and press Command ⌘ and v at the same time). Press the Add button and then the OK button. Click the thumbnail below for a screenshot.

Now when you type &times into a Word document it will automatically be replaced with ×.

Character Palette

The Character Palette is a Mac OS X tool for inserting symbols into any application. I’ll leave it to Apple’s help page to explain this method:
Typing special characters and symbols

Unicode

Even more complex than the previous method, use the symbol’s Unicode code! To do this, you will need to setup as per the previous method – which means there should be a flag at the top-right of your screen on the menu bar. You then need to go to System Preferences from the Apple menu, select International and then the Input Menu tab. There’s a long list of input methods/languages here, you need to look for “Unicode Hex Input” and select it. [source]

Now, to insert say the multiplication symbol, from the flag menu select “Unicode Hex Input”, now hold down the Option/Alt key (⌥) and type the Unicode hex code for × which is 00D7. These codes are not ones you are likely to remember. In my previous article, there’s a cheat sheet. Have a look in that file for a column “Type then Alt+x” – the codes in that column are Unicode. There are lots of charts on the official Unicode site.

Conclusion

I hope that these methods might make your documents or presentations a little nicer looking and their creation a little quicker.

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons License (?).

Posted in • Printable • Software • Word • Technology • Apple Mac | Short URL: http://mths.co/1298

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Type the ‘Plus or Minus sign’ Â±Â into Microsoft Word, Excel, PowerPoint or Outlook.Â Both in Office for Windows and Office for Mac.

Plus-Minus Â± symbol isnâ€™t just used for equations, itâ€™s also used as a shortcut for â€˜plus or minusâ€™.Â In statistics youâ€™ll often see results given as being â€œ Â± 3% â€.

How Plus or Minus Â± looks in different fonts.

Hereâ€™s some examples of how Plus-Minus Â± looks in common Office fonts.Â In some the two characters are separated but some others are joined.

Plus-Minus Â± codes

These are the important code numbers or values youâ€™ll need to enter the Plus / Minus or Â±

Decimal: 177 Hex: 00B1

(web codes arenâ€™t used in Microsoft Office, weâ€™ve included them for the sake of completeness.)

Word and Outlook

The Plus / Minus Â± sign does NOT have an inbuilt shortcut in Word.

Use the standard Word Alt + X symbol shortcutB1 + Alt + X

A detailed and independent look at Windows 10, especially for Microsoft Office.

Fully up-to-date with coverage of the May 2020 major update of Windows 10.

This 1,000 pages, 40 chapter book shows you important features and details for Windows 10 users.

Once in a document you can copy it to AutoCorrect and make your own shortcut.

Word, Excel, PowerPoint and Outlook

Insert | Symbols | Symbol and look for the Plus-Minus symbol.

Windows

In Windows there are several shortcuts to enter the Plus or Minus Â± Â character into any program, but they use a numeric keypad, not the number row above the letters.

Windows Character Map

The Windows Character Map accessory in all Windows releases

Character Map has a search feature, something missing from the Insert | Symbol in Office.

MacOS and Office for Mac inserting characters

On a Mac, to enter the Plus-Minus Â± symbol:

Command + Control + Spacebar shortcut to open the Character Viewer.
Search for â€œ Plus â€œ and the Viewer should find the symbol you need.

Despite the name Character Viewer, the Apple system tool will also insert characters into any program, including Office for Mac.

Registered Trade Mark Â® symbol in Word and Office
X cross symbol âœ— in Word, Excel, PowerPoint and Outlook
Type Infinity âˆž symbols in Word, Excel, PowerPoint and Outlook
Reversed Question Mark / Irony â¸® symbol in Word, Excel, PowerPoint and Outlook