16.1 The References Tab — Overview

All features in this module are found on the References tab in the Ribbon. Understanding the tab structure gives you a map of everything covered.

16.2 Table of Contents (TOC)

An automatic Table of Contents reads all paragraphs formatted with Heading styles and generates a navigable list with correct page numbers — updating in seconds when content changes. The days of manually updating a TOC are over.

Prerequisite — Heading Styles Must Be Applied

Before inserting a TOC, every heading in the document must be formatted with a Heading style:

• Top-level headings → Heading 1 (e.g., Chapter 1, Section titles)
• Sub-headings → Heading 2 (e.g., sub-sections)
• Sub-sub-headings → Heading 3 (optional — only if the TOC needs 3 levels)

Verify headings are correctly styled by checking the Navigation Pane (View → Navigation Pane → Headings tab). If headings do not appear there, they are not styled correctly.

Inserting an Automatic TOC

1. Position your cursor where the TOC should appear — typically after a cover page or executive summary, at the beginning of the document body (often on its own page)
2. Click the References tab → Table of Contents group → Table of Contents
3. The dropdown shows options:
   • Automatic Table 1 — "Contents" heading, tab leader dots, right-aligned page numbers
   • Automatic Table 2 — "Table of Contents" heading, slightly different styling
   • Manual Table — inserts a template you fill in manually (no automatic page numbers — rarely useful)
   • Custom Table of Contents… — full control over all TOC settings (see below)
4. Click Automatic Table 1 or Automatic Table 2 for a standard TOC
5. The TOC generates instantly — all headings listed with correct page numbers and leader dots

Custom Table of Contents — Full Options

1. References → Table of Contents → Custom Table of Contents…
2. The Table of Contents dialog opens:

Updating the TOC

The TOC does NOT update automatically when you add, delete, or rename headings, or when page numbers change. You must manually trigger an update:

1. Click anywhere inside the TOC (the grey shaded area)
2. Click "Update Table" in the bar that appears at the top of the TOC — or — References → Table of Contents group → Update Table — or — right-click the TOC → Update Field
3. A dialog asks:
   • "Update page numbers only" — only recalculates page numbers; keeps the existing heading list unchanged. Use when content was added/deleted but no headings were added or renamed.
   • "Update entire table" — rebuilds the whole TOC from scratch, picking up any new, deleted, or renamed headings. Always use this if you've changed heading text or structure.
4. Click OK

Removing a TOC

1. References → Table of Contents → Table of Contents dropdown → Remove Table of Contents
2. Do not manually select and delete the TOC content — this may leave behind formatting codes

Adding Text to the TOC Without Changing Heading Level

Sometimes you want a paragraph that is not styled as a heading to appear in the TOC (e.g., a subtitle or a key paragraph). Use the "Add Text" function:

1. Click in the paragraph you want to add to the TOC
2. References → Table of Contents → Add Text → choose a level (Level 1, Level 2, or Level 3)
3. The paragraph's outline level is set without changing its paragraph style — it appears in the TOC at the specified level without looking like a heading in the document

16.3 Footnotes & Endnotes

Footnotes and endnotes add supplementary information, citations, or clarifying details without interrupting the main text. Word manages them automatically — numbering, renumbering, and positioning as content changes.

Footnotes vs Endnotes

Inserting a Footnote

1. Position the cursor immediately after the text that needs the note (after the word, before any punctuation that follows — or after the punctuation, depending on your style guide)
2. References → Footnotes group → Insert Footnote — or — keyboard shortcut: Ctrl+Alt+F
3. A superscript reference number (e.g., ¹) appears in the text at the cursor position
4. The cursor jumps to the corresponding footnote area at the bottom of the page
5. Type the footnote text
6. Press Ctrl+Alt+F again (or click in the body) to return to the main text and continue writing

Inserting an Endnote

1. References → Footnotes group → Insert Endnote — or — keyboard shortcut: Ctrl+Alt+D
2. A superscript Roman numeral appears in the text; the cursor jumps to the endnote collection at the end of the document
3. Type the endnote text

Navigating Between Notes and the Body

• Jump to note text from reference mark: Double-click the superscript number in the body text
• Jump back to the reference mark from note text: Double-click the superscript number in the footnote/endnote area
• Move between footnotes: References → Footnotes group → Next Footnote dropdown → Next Footnote / Previous Footnote / Next Endnote / Previous Endnote

Footnote & Endnote Options (Full Control)

1. References → Footnotes group → Dialog Launcher ↗
2. The Footnote and Endnote dialog opens:

Converting Footnotes to Endnotes (and Vice Versa)

1. References → Footnotes → Dialog Launcher ↗
2. Click Convert… at the bottom of the dialog
3. Choose:
   • Convert all footnotes to endnotes
   • Convert all endnotes to footnotes
   • Swap footnotes and endnotes (both directions simultaneously)
4. Click OK

Deleting a Footnote or Endnote

• Select the superscript reference mark in the body text (not the note text at the bottom)
• Press Delete
• Both the reference mark AND the corresponding note text are deleted together — remaining notes automatically renumber

16.4 Citations & Bibliography

Word's Citation Manager tracks all your sources — books, journal articles, websites, interviews, court cases — and automatically formats them in your chosen citation style (APA, Harvard, Chicago, MLA, etc.). When you insert a citation, the in-text reference is generated automatically. When you insert a Bibliography, all cited sources are listed and formatted correctly in one action.

Setting the Citation Style

1. References → Citations & Bibliography group → Style dropdown
2. Choose your required style:
   • APA — American Psychological Association. Author-date in-text citations (Smith, 2023). Standard in psychology, education, and social sciences.
   • Harvard — Author-date. Common in SA universities and many business schools. Author-date in-text (Smith 2023).
   • Chicago Author-Date — Author-date variant used in history, arts, and humanities.
   • Chicago Notes & Bibliography — Footnote citations with a bibliography. Common in humanities.
   • MLA — Modern Language Association. Author-page in-text (Smith 45). Used in literature and humanities.
   • IEEE — Numbered in-text citations [1]. Used in engineering and technology.
   • OSCOLA — Oxford Standard for Citation of Legal Authorities. Used in SA and UK law.

Adding a New Source

1. References → Citations & Bibliography group → Insert Citation → Add New Source…
2. In the Create Source dialog:
   • Type of Source — select from: Book, Book Section, Journal Article, Article in a Periodical, Conference Proceedings, Report, Web Site, Document from Website, Electronic Source, Art, Sound Recording, Performance, Film, Interview, Patent, Case, Statute, and more
   • The fields change based on the source type — fill in the relevant details (Author, Title, Year, Publisher, URL, DOI, etc.)
   • Click "Show All Bibliography Fields" to see additional optional fields (Translator, Editor, Volume, Edition, etc.)
3. Click OK
4. The in-text citation is inserted at the cursor position, formatted according to your selected style (e.g., "(Smith, 2023)" for APA)

Inserting a Citation for a Previously Added Source

1. Position the cursor where the citation should appear
2. References → Insert Citation → the dropdown shows all previously added sources
3. Click the source to insert it — the in-text citation appears automatically

Managing Sources — The Source Manager

1. References → Citations & Bibliography group → Manage Sources
2. The Source Manager dialog shows two lists:
   • Master List — all sources you have ever added across all documents on this computer. A permanent personal library.
   • Current List — sources currently in this document. Sources with a tick (✓) are cited in the document; others are in the list but not yet cited.
3. From the Source Manager you can: New (add a source), Edit (modify an existing source), Delete (remove from the current list), Copy >> (copy a source from the master list into the current document)
4. Sources in the Master List are available to every document you create on this computer — build your library once and reuse it across many documents

Editing an In-Text Citation (Page Numbers, Prefix, Suffix)

1. Click on any in-text citation in the document to select it (it appears as a grey field)
2. Click the dropdown arrow ▾ that appears on the right → Edit Citation…
3. In the Edit Citation dialog:
   • Add: — page numbers for a specific page reference (e.g., p. 45 → displays as (Smith, 2023, p. 45))
   • Suppress: Author / Year / Title checkboxes — suppress parts of the citation if you have already named the author in the text (e.g., "Smith (2023) argued..." → suppress author so it shows only "(2023)")
4. Click OK

Inserting a Bibliography / Reference List

1. Position the cursor where the bibliography should appear — typically the last page, after the body text
2. References → Citations & Bibliography group → Bibliography
3. Choose from the pre-built gallery designs:
   • Bibliography — labelled "Bibliography"
   • References — labelled "References" (standard for APA and Harvard)
   • Works Cited — labelled "Works Cited" (standard for MLA)
   • Insert Bibliography — inserts just the list without a heading label
4. Word generates a fully formatted reference list including all cited sources in the correct order and format for your chosen citation style

Updating the Bibliography

• If you add or edit sources after inserting the bibliography, click anywhere in it → click "Update Citations and Bibliography" in the bar that appears — or — right-click → Update Field

16.5 Captions & Table of Figures

Captions are numbered labels applied to figures, tables, equations, and other objects in a document. Word automatically numbers captions sequentially and can generate a Table of Figures — a navigable list of all captioned objects with their page numbers — in the same way a TOC is generated from headings.

Inserting a Caption

1. Click on the object you want to caption (image, table, chart, or equation)
2. References → Captions group → Insert Caption — or — right-click the object → Insert Caption…
3. The Caption dialog opens:
   • Label — choose from: Figure, Table, Equation — or click New Label… to create a custom label (e.g., "Diagram", "Exhibit", "Chart")
   • Position — Above selected item or Below selected item. Figures typically have captions below; tables above (depends on your style guide)
   • Caption text — the label and number (e.g., "Figure 1") appear automatically in the Caption box. Click after the number and type a descriptive title (e.g., "Figure 1 — Revenue by Quarter, 2024")
   • Numbering… — choose the number format (1,2,3 / a,b,c / i,ii,iii) and optionally include the chapter number (e.g., Figure 3-2 for the 2nd figure in chapter 3)
   • Exclude label from caption — tick if you want only the number without the "Figure" label
4. Click OK — the caption is inserted with the Caption paragraph style applied automatically

AutoCaption — Automatic Captions When Inserting Objects

1. References → Captions → AutoCaption…
2. Tick the object types that should receive automatic captions when inserted:
   • Microsoft Word Table
   • Microsoft Excel Worksheet
   • Microsoft PowerPoint Presentation
   • Bitmap Image / JPEG Image
   • Microsoft Graph Chart
3. Set the label and position for each object type
4. Click OK — from now on, whenever you insert that object type, a caption field appears automatically

Inserting a Table of Figures

1. Position the cursor where the Table of Figures should appear (typically after the TOC, at the front of the document)
2. References → Captions group → Insert Table of Figures
3. The Table of Figures dialog is similar to the TOC dialog:
   • Caption label — choose which type of objects to list: Figure / Table / Equation / (none for all)
   • Show page numbers / Right align — same options as TOC
   • Tab leader — dots, dashes, underline, or none
   • Formats — pre-built visual styles
   • Include label and number — tick to show "Figure 1" in the list; untick to show only the caption description text
4. Click OK — a list of all figures (or tables, or equations) with their page numbers is generated

Updating the Table of Figures

• Click anywhere in the Table of Figures → click "Update Table" → choose Update page numbers only or Update entire table → OK
• Same process as updating the TOC — always do this before final distribution

Cross-References

Cross-references are automatic links within the document — "see Figure 3 on page 12" where the figure number and page number update automatically if content moves.

1. Type the introductory text (e.g., "as shown in")
2. References → Captions group → Cross-reference
3. In the Cross-reference dialog:
   • Reference type — Numbered item / Heading / Bookmark / Footnote / Endnote / Figure / Table / Equation
   • Insert reference to — what to show: Entire caption / Only label and number / Only caption text / Page number / Paragraph number / Above/below
   • For which caption — the specific object from the list
   • Insert as hyperlink — tick to make the cross-reference clickable (jumps to the referenced item)
4. Click Insert
5. If the referenced figure moves pages, right-click the cross-reference → Update Field to refresh the page number

16.6 Building an Index

An index is an alphabetical list of key terms with their page numbers — found at the back of books, manuals, and comprehensive reference documents. In Word, you build an index by marking entries throughout the document, then generating the index automatically.

Step 1 — Mark Index Entries

1. Select the text you want to index — or place the cursor next to the term
2. References → Index group → Mark Entry — or — keyboard shortcut: Alt+Shift+X
3. The Mark Index Entry dialog opens (it stays open so you can mark many entries without reopening):
   • Main entry — the term as it should appear in the index (auto-filled with selected text). Edit as needed — e.g., if you selected "financial statements", you might change the main entry to "Financial statements" (capitalised for index convention)
   • Subentry — a sub-category under the main entry (e.g., Main entry: "Financial statements"; Subentry: "audited" — appears as:
     Financial statements
        audited, 14, 22
   • Cross-reference — "See" or "See also" reference to another index term instead of a page number (e.g., "Revenue: See also Income")
   • Options:
     • Current page — marks the current page number
     • Page range — marks a range of pages using a bookmark (e.g., pages 14–19 for a section about one topic)
   • Page number format — Bold / Italic checkboxes to emphasise specific page references (e.g., bold for the main definition page)
4. Click Mark to mark the current selection — or — click Mark All to mark every occurrence of this text throughout the document
5. The dialog stays open — scroll in the document, select the next term, click in the "Main entry" field, edit if needed, click Mark — repeat for all index terms
6. Close the dialog when finished marking

Step 2 — Insert the Index

1. Position the cursor where the index should appear — last page of the document, typically after a page break with the heading "Index"
2. References → Index group → Insert Index
3. The Index dialog opens:

4. Click OK — the index generates automatically from all marked entries, alphabetically sorted with page numbers

Updating the Index

• Click anywhere in the index → press F9 — or — right-click the index → Update Field
• Always update after making changes to marked entries or when content has moved

Editing Index Entries

• To edit an existing index mark: turn on Show/Hide ¶ → find the { XE "..." } field code → click inside it → make changes to the text within the quotes → update the index (F9)
• To delete an index mark: turn on Show/Hide ¶ → select the entire { XE "..." } code including the brackets → press Delete → update the index

16.7 Table of Authorities (Legal Documents)

The Table of Authorities is a specialised reference list used in legal documents — specifically pleadings, briefs, and court submissions — listing all cited cases, statutes, regulations, and secondary sources with their page numbers. It is the legal equivalent of a bibliography.

How It Works

1. Mark Citations: Select each legal citation in the document → References → Table of Authorities → Mark Citation (or Alt+Shift+I) → set the Category (Cases / Statutes / Regulations / Constitutional Provisions / Other Authorities) → click Mark or Mark All
2. Insert the Table: References → Table of Authorities → Insert Table of Authorities → choose the category to include (or All) → set formatting options → OK
3. Update: Right-click the table → Update Field (same as all other reference tables)

16.8 Updating All Reference Fields Before Distribution

Every automatic reference in Word — TOC, Table of Figures, Index, Bibliography, Cross-references, Page numbers — is stored as a field. Fields must be manually updated before you distribute or print the final document. Here is the fastest way to update everything at once.

Update All Fields in One Action

1. Press Ctrl+A to select the entire document
2. Press F9 to update all fields simultaneously
3. If asked "Update entire table or page numbers only?" — choose Update entire table for each reference table
4. All TOC entries, figure numbers, bibliography entries, index page numbers, and cross-references refresh in one pass

Update Fields When Printing

1. File → Options → Display
2. Under "Printing options", tick "Update fields before printing"
3. Now every time you print, all fields update automatically — eliminating the risk of printing a document with outdated page numbers

16.9 Quick Self-Check

Q1: You have completed a 60-page report and need to insert a Table of Contents showing three levels of headings with dot leaders to right-aligned page numbers. What must be true about your document before the TOC will work correctly, and how do you insert it?

✓ Every heading in the document must be formatted with Word's Heading styles (Heading 1 for top-level, Heading 2 for sub-sections, Heading 3 for sub-sub-sections) — not manually bolded/enlarged text. Verify by checking that all headings appear in the Navigation Pane (View → Navigation Pane → Headings tab). Then: References → Table of Contents → Custom Table of Contents → set Show levels: 3, Tab leader: …… (dots), Right align page numbers: ticked → OK.

Q2: You insert a TOC on page 2. Over the next few days you add three new sections and rename two existing chapters. The page numbers in the TOC no longer match the document. What do you do, and which update option should you choose?

✓ Click anywhere in the TOC → click "Update Table" in the bar that appears (or References → Update Table, or right-click → Update Field). In the dialog, choose "Update entire table" — NOT "Update page numbers only", because you have renamed headings. "Update entire table" rebuilds the TOC from scratch, picking up all renamed, added, and deleted headings as well as the correct page numbers.

Q3: Your thesis supervisor requires all your footnotes to restart numbering at 1 on every page and use alphabetical characters (a, b, c) instead of numerals. How do you configure this?

✓ References → Footnotes group → Dialog Launcher ↗ → in the Footnote and Endnote dialog: Number format: a, b, c → Numbering: Restart each page → Apply changes to: Whole document → Apply. All footnotes now use a, b, c and restart at "a" on every new page.

Q4: You are writing an APA-formatted research paper. You cite a source by Smith (2023) but it appears as "(Smith, 2023)" in the text. You have just written "According to Smith (2023)..." and now the in-text citation looks like "According to Smith (Smith, 2023)..." — the author is doubled. How do you fix this?

✓ Click on the in-text citation "(Smith, 2023)" → click the dropdown arrow ▾ that appears → Edit Citation → under Suppress: tick "Author" → OK. The citation now shows only "(2023)" — the year only — since the author's name is already in the running text. The formatted result reads: "According to Smith (2023)..." correctly.

Q5: You are building an index for a 200-page legal manual. The term "indemnification" appears on pages 14, 22, 45, 67, and 112, and you want page 14 (the primary definition) to appear in bold in the index. How do you achieve this?

✓ For page 14: navigate to the word "indemnification" on page 14 → select it → Alt+Shift+X (Mark Index Entry) → Main entry: "Indemnification" → tick "Bold" in the Page number format section → click Mark. For all other pages: navigate to each occurrence → Alt+Shift+X → Main entry: "Indemnification" → leave Bold unticked → Mark. Or at page 14, click "Mark All" first (which marks all without bold) → then go back to page 14 → edit the XE field code to add \b for bold on that specific mark. Result in index: "Indemnification, 14, 22, 45, 67, 112"

Q6: After completing and distributing a report, your manager asks why the caption under Figure 3 says "Figure 3" but the cross-reference in Chapter 2 still says "Figure 2" (it was originally the second figure before you inserted a new one). How do you fix all cross-references in one action?

✓ Press Ctrl+A to select the entire document → press F9 to update all fields. This forces every field in the document — including all captions, cross-references, TOC, and page number fields — to refresh simultaneously. Captions renumber automatically and cross-references update to reflect the new numbers. Always run Ctrl+A → F9 before distributing any document that uses automatic references.

✓ Module 16 Complete — You Have Learned:

• The References tab structure — all six groups and their commands (ASCII layout diagram)
• The golden rule: correct styles and structure before any automatic reference feature
• Table of Contents — prerequisites (Heading styles), inserting Automatic Table 1/2, all Custom TOC dialog options (page numbers, tab leader, format, show levels, Options, Modify)
• Updating the TOC — "Update page numbers only" vs "Update entire table" and when to use each
• Removing a TOC correctly via the dropdown
• Adding Text to the TOC without changing the paragraph's heading style
• Footnotes vs Endnotes — position, default numbering, best use cases
• Inserting footnotes (Ctrl+Alt+F) and endnotes (Ctrl+Alt+D) and navigating between them
• Footnote & Endnote Options dialog — location, number format, custom mark, start at, numbering restart, apply to
• Converting footnotes ↔ endnotes; deleting notes correctly (from the body superscript, not the note zone)
• Setting the citation style — APA, Harvard, Chicago, MLA, IEEE, OSCOLA
• Adding new sources — all source types and the Show All Bibliography Fields option
• The Source Manager — Master List vs Current List, Copy, Edit, Delete
• Editing in-text citations — adding page numbers, suppressing Author/Year/Title
• Inserting Bibliography / References / Works Cited and updating it
• Inserting captions — Label types, Position, numbering, chapter-prefixed numbers
• AutoCaption — automatic captions for specific object types
• Table of Figures — inserting, dialog settings, updating
• Cross-references — all reference types, insert reference to options, Insert as hyperlink, updating with F9
• Building an Index — marking entries (Alt+Shift+X), main entry/subentry/cross-reference/page range, Mark All, viewing XE field codes
• Inserting the Index — type (indented/run-in), columns, right-align, formats; updating with F9
• Editing and deleting index entry markers using Show/Hide ¶
• Table of Authorities for legal documents — marking citations by category, inserting the table
• Updating all fields at once — Ctrl+A → F9 and the "Update fields before printing" Word Option
• 10-point final document checklist for all reference elements