How do I equally balance columns containing dictionary entries?

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Tasview - 21 Mar 2007 05:39 GMT

I'm using Word 2003 to write a bilingual dictionary. The dictionary pages are
divided into two columns and I want the text at the bottom of the left column
of each page to line up exactly with the text in the right column. The
'balance column length' suggestions in Microsoft Help do not help, I think
because after each entry and its translation a new line is started, i.e. each
entry is like a new paragraph.

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Stefan Blom - 21 Mar 2007 08:36 GMT

Are you using text columns (Format | Columns)? You'd better use a
two-column table (without borders) for this task. Then you could just
insert a new row whenever you want text to line up.

Note, however, that Word is not really capable of creating
"even-height" pages/columns, if that is what you are trying to do. A
fixed value for line spacing, and a value for spacing before or after
that is a multiple of the line spacing, would help, but it would
hardly be perfect. For more on these and other factors, see
http://sbarnhill.mvps.org/WordFAQs/BottomLine.htm.

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Stefan Blom
Microsoft Word MVP

> I'm using Word 2003 to write a bilingual dictionary. The dictionary pages are
> divided into two columns and I want the text at the bottom of the left column
> of each page to line up exactly with the text in the right column. The
> 'balance column length' suggestions in Microsoft Help do not help, I think
> because after each entry and its translation a new line is started, i.e. each
> entry is like a new paragraph.

Reply to this Message