14.1 Understanding Word Tables

The Two Contextual Table Tabs

When your cursor is inside a table, two additional Ribbon tabs appear automatically:

• Table Design — table styles, border styles, shading, line weight, border colour, borders button
• Table Layout — add/delete rows and columns, merge/split cells, cell size, alignment, text direction, sorting, formula, convert to text

14.2 Creating Tables — Four Methods

Method 1 — Insert Grid (Quick, Small Tables)

1. Insert tab → Tables group → click Table
2. A grid of squares appears — hover over the grid to select the number of columns × rows you need
3. The grid preview updates in your document as you move the mouse
4. Click to insert the table (maximum 10 columns × 8 rows using this method)

Method 2 — Insert Table Dialog (Precise, Any Size)

1. Insert → Table → Insert Table…
2. In the Insert Table dialog:
   • Number of columns — enter any number
   • Number of rows — enter any number
   • AutoFit behaviour:
     • Fixed column width — set a specific width (or "Auto" to divide available space equally)
     • AutoFit to contents — columns shrink/expand to fit the text typed in each cell (good for variable-length content)
     • AutoFit to window — table always stretches to fill the full page width regardless of content
   • Remember dimensions for new tables — tick to make these settings the default
3. Click OK

Method 3 — Draw Table (Custom, Irregular Tables)

1. Insert → Table → Draw Table — the cursor becomes a pencil ✏️
2. Draw the outer boundary: click and drag diagonally to create the table rectangle
3. Draw internal lines: click and drag horizontally to add rows, vertically to add columns — you can draw lines of any length within the table, enabling cells of different heights and widths
4. Press Esc or click the Draw Table button again to exit drawing mode
5. Use the Eraser tool (Table Layout → Draw → Eraser) to remove any unwanted lines — this effectively merges cells

Method 4 — Quick Tables (Pre-Built Designs)

1. Insert → Table → Quick Tables
2. A gallery of pre-formatted table designs appears — including calendars, tabular lists, matrices, and formatted data grids
3. Click any design to insert it — replace the placeholder data with your own content
4. You can save your own table designs here: select the completed table → Insert → Table → Quick Tables → Save Selection to Quick Tables Gallery

14.3 Navigating & Selecting in Tables

Keyboard Navigation

Selection Methods

14.4 Adding & Removing Rows and Columns

Inserting Rows

• Insert below: Right-click a row → Insert → Insert Rows Below
• Insert above: Right-click a row → Insert → Insert Rows Above
• Ribbon: Table Layout → Rows & Columns group → Insert Above / Insert Below
• Multiple rows at once: Select the number of rows you want to insert first (e.g., select 3 rows), then use Insert Above/Below — 3 rows are inserted
• Quick insert (+): Hover between two rows until a + circle appears on the left edge → click it to insert a row at that position

Inserting Columns

• Right-click a column → Insert → Insert Columns to the Left / Insert Columns to the Right
• Table Layout → Insert Left / Insert Right
• Quick insert (+): Hover above the column border line at the top of the table until a + circle appears → click to insert a column

Deleting Rows, Columns, or the Entire Table

• Select the row(s) or column(s) → right-click → Delete Rows / Delete Columns
• Table Layout → Rows & Columns group → Delete dropdown → Delete Rows / Delete Columns / Delete Table / Delete Cells
• To delete the entire table: click the Table Selector ⊕ → press Backspace (not Delete — Delete only removes the content, not the table structure)

Inserting a Row Before the First Row (Before a Header)

1. Click in the very first cell of the first row
2. Table Layout → Rows & Columns → Insert Above
3. A new row is added above the existing header row

Adding Rows by Pressing Tab

Position the cursor in the last cell of the last row (bottom-right cell) → press Tab → a new row is appended automatically. This is the most natural way to extend a table while entering data.

14.5 Merging & Splitting Cells

Merging Cells

Merging combines two or more cells into a single larger cell. The combined cell spans the space of the original cells — text from all original cells is retained (separated by paragraph marks).

1. Select the cells you want to merge (they must be adjacent — in a row, a column, or a rectangular block)
2. Method A: Table Layout → Merge group → Merge Cells
3. Method B: Right-click the selection → Merge Cells
4. Method C: Use the Eraser tool (Table Design → Draw Borders → Eraser) and click on the border line between cells to erase it — effectively merging the cells on either side

Common Merge Use Cases

Splitting Cells

Splitting divides one cell into two or more smaller cells.

1. Click in the cell you want to split (or select multiple cells to split them all)
2. Table Layout → Merge group → Split Cells
3. In the Split Cells dialog:
   • Number of columns — how many columns to divide this cell into
   • Number of rows — how many rows to divide this cell into
   • Merge cells before split — if multiple cells are selected and this is ticked, they are first merged into one, then split according to your settings
4. Click OK

Splitting a Table into Two Separate Tables

1. Click in the row that should become the first row of the second table
2. Table Layout → Merge group → Split Table
3. The table splits at that row — a blank paragraph appears between the two tables
4. To rejoin: delete the paragraph between the two tables

14.6 Column Width & Row Height

Adjusting Column Width

• Drag the column border: Position the cursor on a vertical border line — it becomes a double-headed arrow ↔ — click and drag left or right. Hold Alt while dragging to see exact measurements on the Ruler.
• Drag on the Ruler: The Ruler shows the table column markers — drag them to resize columns precisely
• Precise width: Click in a column → Table Layout → Cell Size group → set Width in cm
• Distribute columns evenly: Select multiple columns → Table Layout → Cell Size → Distribute Columns — makes all selected columns the same width

AutoFit Options

Table Layout → Cell Size group → AutoFit dropdown:

Adjusting Row Height

• Drag the row border: Hover on a horizontal border — cursor becomes a vertical double-arrow ↕ — drag up or down
• Precise height: Click in a row → Table Layout → Cell Size → set Height in cm
• Distribute rows evenly: Select multiple rows → Table Layout → Distribute Rows
• Set minimum row height: Table Properties → Row tab → Specify height: [value] → Row height is: At least (row grows if content requires more space) or Exactly (fixed height — content may be cut off if too tall)

14.7 Table Styles

Table styles are pre-designed combinations of borders, shading, and font settings applied to the entire table in one click — the fastest way to produce a professional-looking table.

Applying a Table Style

1. Click anywhere inside the table
2. Click the Table Design contextual tab (appears automatically when in a table)
3. In the Table Styles gallery, hover over any style to preview it live on your table
4. Click a style to apply it
5. Click the More ▾ button on the gallery to see all available styles in a full expanded view

Table Style Options (Checkboxes — Table Design Tab)

These checkboxes in the Table Style Options group control which special formatting is applied to specific parts of the table:

Creating a Custom Table Style

1. Table Design → Table Styles gallery → More ▾ → New Table Style…
2. Name the style (e.g., Corp Data Table)
3. Use the "Apply formatting to" dropdown to set formatting for each table component separately: Whole table, Header row, Total row, Odd banded rows, Even banded rows, First column, etc.
4. Set font, border, shading, and alignment for each component
5. Tick "New documents based on this template" to make the style available in all future documents → OK

14.8 Borders & Shading — Manual Control

Beyond table styles, you can control borders and shading on any cell, group of cells, or the entire table with precise manual settings.

Applying Borders via the Ribbon (Quick)

1. Select the cells, rows, or table you want to border
2. Table Design → Borders group → click the Borders dropdown ▾
3. Choose from: All Borders, Outside Borders, Inside Borders, No Border, Top/Bottom/Left/Right Border, Inside Horizontal/Vertical Border, and diagonal options

Borders and Shading Dialog (Full Control)

1. Select the target cells
2. Table Design → Borders → Borders and Shading… — or — right-click → Table Properties → Borders and Shading
3. The dialog has three tabs:

Painting Borders with Draw Borders Tools (Table Design Tab)

An alternative to the dialog — allows you to "paint" borders directly onto cell edges like a drawing tool:

1. Table Design → Draw Borders group:
   • Set Line Style (solid, dashed, double, etc.)
   • Set Line Weight (thickness in pt)
   • Set Pen Color (the border colour)
2. Click Draw Table — the cursor becomes a pencil
3. Click on any cell border to apply the selected style to that edge — you can paint specific borders without selecting cells first
4. Press Esc to exit draw mode

Removing All Borders (Making an Invisible Table)

1. Click the Table Selector ⊕ to select the whole table
2. Table Design → Borders dropdown → No Border
3. The borders disappear — the table structure remains but is invisible when printed
4. The gridlines (non-printing guides) remain visible on screen for navigation — toggle them via Table Layout → Table → View Gridlines

14.9 Text Alignment & Direction in Cells

Cell Text Alignment — Nine Options

Table Layout → Alignment group shows a 3×3 grid of nine alignment buttons — the most comprehensive alignment options in Word. Each button combines horizontal and vertical alignment:

★ = Most commonly used. Centre Left for data; Centre Centre for headers in tall cells.

Cell Text Direction

Text in cells can be rotated — useful for column headers in narrow columns, sidebar labels, or space-saving layouts.

1. Click in the cell (or select cells) whose text direction you want to change
2. Table Layout → Alignment group → click Text Direction repeatedly to cycle through:
   • Normal (left to right — default)
   • Rotated 90° (bottom to top — text reads upward)
   • Rotated 270° (top to bottom — text reads downward)
3. The cell automatically adjusts height to accommodate the rotated text

Cell Margins (Padding)

Cell margins control the space between the cell border and the text content inside — think of it as internal padding.

1. Table Layout → Alignment group → Cell Margins
2. In the Table Options dialog:
   • Default cell margins — sets top, bottom, left, right padding for all cells in the table simultaneously
   • Default is 0.19 cm top/bottom and 0.19 cm left/right — increase for a more spacious, readable table
3. To set different padding for a specific cell: Table Layout → Cell Size group → Properties → Cell tab → Options → untick "Same as the whole table" → set individual margins

14.10 Table Properties — Positioning, Repeating Headers & More

The Table Properties dialog (right-click inside table → Table Properties… — or — Table Layout → Table → Properties) provides complete control over the table's behaviour and positioning.

Table Tab

Row Tab — Repeat Header Row

One of the most important table settings for long tables:

1. Click in the header row of your table
2. Table Properties → Row tab
3. Tick "Repeat as header row at the top of each page"
4. Click OK
5. The header row now automatically repeats at the top of every page when the table spans multiple pages — readers always know which column they are looking at

Row Tab — Allow Row to Break Across Pages

• Untick "Allow row to break across pages" → the entire row moves to the next page if it doesn't fit — no row is ever split mid-cell
• Tick "Allow row to break across pages" → long cell content can be split across a page break, which can look untidy but prevents large gaps when a single row is very tall
• For most professional documents, untick this — keep rows intact

Cell Tab — Vertical Alignment

Sets the default vertical alignment for the selected cells: Top, Center, or Bottom. This is the same as the alignment buttons in Table Layout, accessible here within Table Properties.

14.11 Converting Text to a Table — and Tables to Text

Convert Delimited Text to a Table

If you receive data in a text format (comma-separated, tab-separated, from a CSV export or email), Word can automatically structure it into a table.

1. Select the text to convert — ensure each row is a separate paragraph and each column value is separated by a consistent delimiter (comma, tab, semicolon, etc.)
2. Insert → Table → Convert Text to Table…
3. In the dialog:
   • Number of columns — Word detects this automatically based on the delimiter count
   • AutoFit behaviour — Fixed column width / AutoFit to contents / AutoFit to window
   • Separate text at: Choose the delimiter — Tabs, Commas, Paragraphs, or Other (type any character, e.g., semicolon ; or pipe |)
4. Click OK — the text is instantly structured into a table

Convert a Table to Text

1. Click anywhere in the table (or select specific rows to convert only those)
2. Table Layout → Data group → Convert to Text
3. In the Convert Table to Text dialog, choose the separator character: Paragraph marks (each cell becomes its own paragraph), Tabs, Commas, or Other
4. Click OK — the table structure is removed and text is separated by the chosen delimiter

14.12 Formulas in Word Tables

Word tables can perform basic calculations — enough for simple totals, averages, and counts in documents without needing to embed an Excel spreadsheet.

Inserting a Formula

1. Click in the cell where the formula result should appear
2. Table Layout → Data group → Formula
3. The Formula dialog opens with a suggested formula (Word often guesses correctly — e.g., =SUM(ABOVE) for a totals cell at the bottom of a number column)
4. In the Formula field, type or modify the formula
5. Choose a Number format from the dropdown (e.g., #,##0 for thousands separator, R#,##0.00 for Rand currency)
6. Click OK

Cell References in Word Tables

Word uses Excel-style cell references — columns are A, B, C… and rows are 1, 2, 3… starting from the top-left cell (A1).

Common Formulas

Updating Formula Results

Word table formulas do not update automatically when source data changes (unlike Excel). To refresh a formula:

• Right-click the formula cell → Update Field
• — or — click the formula cell → press F9
• To update all fields in the document: Ctrl+A → F9

14.13 Sorting Table Data

Word can sort table rows based on the values in one, two, or three columns — alphabetically, numerically, or by date. Covered in detail in Module 9.7. Quick reference here:

1. Click inside the table
2. Table Layout → Data group → Sort
3. Set Sort by (primary column), Then by (secondary), Type (Text/Number/Date), Ascending/Descending
4. Tick "Header row" if row 1 is a header that should not be sorted
5. Click OK

14.14 Table Keyboard Shortcuts

14.15 Quick Self-Check

Q1: You need to create an invoice table with a wide "Description" column, a narrow "Qty" column, a narrow "Unit Price" column, and a "Total" column. The table should always span the full page width. What table creation method and what AutoFit setting should you use?

✓ Use Insert Table (Insert → Table → Insert Table) to set the exact number of columns (4) and rows needed. Set AutoFit behaviour to "AutoFit to window" so the table always spans the full text area width. Then manually drag the column borders to adjust the relative widths — Description wide, Qty and Unit Price narrow, Total moderately wide.

Q2: Your table spans 4 pages. When a reader is on page 3, they cannot see the column headers ("Description", "Qty", "Unit Price", "Total") and must scroll back to page 1. How do you fix this?

✓ Click in the header row. Right-click → Table Properties → Row tab → tick "Repeat as header row at the top of each page" → OK. The header row now automatically repeats at the top of every page the table continues onto, so readers always see the column labels.

Q3: You have a "Total" cell at the bottom of a "Price" column containing R 150.00, R 89.50, and R 275.00. How do you insert a formula to sum these values, and what format code would display the result as R 514.50?

✓ Click in the Total cell → Table Layout → Data → Formula. The dialog suggests =SUM(ABOVE) — confirm this is correct. In the Number format field, type R #,##0.00 → OK. The result displays as R 514.50. To update if values change: right-click the result cell → Update Field, or press F9.

Q4: What is the difference between a table's Borders and its Gridlines, and which one prints?

✓ Borders are visible lines around cells that are part of the document formatting — they print exactly as you see them. Gridlines are faint dotted lines that show the table structure on screen only — they are a visual guide for editing and do NOT print. A table can have no borders (invisible when printed) but still show gridlines on screen so you can see where the cells are while working.

Q5: You receive a monthly CSV report via email with data formatted as: Smith,Jane,Finance,R45000 on each line. How do you convert this into a properly structured Word table?

✓ Paste the CSV text into Word. Select all the pasted text. Go to Insert → Table → Convert Text to Table. In the dialog, Word will detect 4 columns. Set "Separate text at" to Commas. Set AutoFit to "AutoFit to contents" or "AutoFit to window". Click OK. The four comma-separated values on each line become four columns in the table, with each line becoming one row.

Q6: You have selected cells B2 through B5 in a table (four price cells) and pressed Delete. The cells now appear empty. But the table structure remains with empty cells. If you wanted to completely remove those rows from the document, what should you do instead?

✓ Pressing Delete removes only the cell content but leaves the empty row structure. To remove the rows entirely, select rows 2–5 (click in the left margin beside row 2 and drag to row 5) → right-click → Delete Rows. Alternatively: Table Layout → Delete → Delete Rows. This removes the rows from the table structure completely, not just their content.

✓ Module 14 Complete — You Have Learned:

• Table anatomy — cell, row, column, header row, borders, gridlines, Table Selector ⊕, Resize Handle — and the two contextual tabs (Table Design, Table Layout)
• Four table creation methods — Insert Grid, Insert Table dialog (with all AutoFit options), Draw Table (with Eraser), and Quick Tables gallery
• Table navigation — all 7 keyboard shortcuts including Alt+Home/End and Alt+PgUp/PgDn
• Selection methods — cell, row, column, multiple cells (contiguous and non-contiguous), entire table
• Adding rows and columns — right-click Insert, Table Layout Ribbon buttons, + quick insert, Tab to add at end
• Deleting rows, columns, and entire tables — Delete vs Backspace distinction
• Merging cells — three methods (Layout tab, right-click, Eraser); 4 common use cases
• Splitting cells — the Split Cells dialog (rows, columns, merge before split); splitting a table into two
• Column width and row height — drag, Ruler, precise Layout tab values, Distribute Columns/Rows
• AutoFit — Contents, Window, and Fixed Column Width with use cases
• Table Styles — applying from gallery, the 6 Table Style Option checkboxes, creating a custom table style
• Borders — Ribbon dropdown, full Borders and Shading dialog (all settings), Draw Borders pen tool
• Removing borders and working with invisible (no-border) tables
• The nine cell alignment options (3×3 grid of horizontal × vertical combinations)
• Text direction — rotating text in cells for narrow column headers
• Cell margins (padding) — Table Options dialog and per-cell overrides; recommended values
• Table Properties — all four tabs (Table: width, alignment, text wrapping; Row: repeat header, allow break; Cell: vertical alignment)
• Repeating header rows across pages — the critical setting for multi-page tables
• Converting text to table — delimiter selection and all AutoFit options; practical CSV example
• Converting table to text — separator options
• Table formulas — inserting, cell references (ABOVE/BELOW/LEFT/RIGHT/A1/A1:A5), 8 common formulas, number formats, updating with F9
• Sorting table data — quick reference with Header row option
• Complete keyboard shortcut reference — 10 shortcuts including move row up/down