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Confused on Styles with Multilevel List

Anonymous
2022-09-23T18:59:40+00:00

I am trying to create a template in Word (365 for Business) that has a standard Headings configured with a outline format. From Home, Paragraph, Multilevel list, I selected Define New List Style and assigned a style name in Name.

I then went to Format, Numbering and selected each level and assigned a level in the Link level to style field at Heading 1, Heading 2, etc.

Next, I set up the numbering each of the 9 levels by clearing the Enter formatting for number: field followed by selecting 1,2,3 ... in the Number style for this level: field which resulted in the number 1 with a greyed background appearing the Enter formatting for number: field.

I inserted a period after the 1 and set up the Font and selected the next level. I cleared out the Number style for this level: field and selected Level 1 from the Include level number from: field which displayed the grey background 1 in the Enter formatting for number: field.

It is at this point is where I believe it (or me) went south as I then selected 1,2,3 ... in the Number style for this level: field which resulted in 11 with a grey background. I inserted a period between each 1 and one after the second grey background 1. For subsequent levels, found I had to manually insert the periods and 1's which did not have the grey background. I did this for all 9 levels and click OK. Headings 1 and 2 work fine, the others do not. They start their numbering at 1 and do not appear to be linked to the previous levels.

To exacerbate the problem, once I completed everything and clicked on OK, I could not find this List Style I had just created so I could go back and edit it to find out where my problem was.

Apologies for the lengthy post but I was hoping to explain thoroughly.

Microsoft 365 and Office | Word | For business | Windows

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  1. Stefan Blom 342.2K Reputation points MVP Volunteer Moderator
    2022-09-27T18:41:17+00:00

    In the document where the list style has been saved, you should be able to see it under "List Styles" in the style gallery (as I wrote in a previous reply of mine).

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  2. Doug Robbins - MVP - Office Apps and Services 323.1K Reputation points MVP Volunteer Moderator
    2022-09-25T07:19:10+00:00

    The instruction was not for "each numbering level being attached to an existing paragraph". It was for "each numbering level being attached to an existing paragraph style"

    You need to change the font in the relevant paragraph style.

    If you send me a copy of the document (or template), referencing this thread in the covering email message and providing information on what it is that you want (font, font size, etc), I will investigate the issue.

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  3. Doug Robbins - MVP - Office Apps and Services 323.1K Reputation points MVP Volunteer Moderator
    2022-09-23T23:02:12+00:00

    You can save yourself a lot of work in setting up multi-level list numbering if you start by selecting the list type highlighted in the following screen shot

    Doing that will automatically set up the numbering format for each of the nine levels and link each one to the appropriate Heading style.

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  4. Charles Kenyon 167.6K Reputation points Volunteer Moderator
    2022-09-23T20:20:18+00:00

    Following up on my previous post...

    It appears you are attempting to use the methods that I prescribed. However,

    1. You want to use the attached paragraph styles to assign numbering to a paragraph, not the list style.
    2. Please consider saving a copy of a document with the problem in a cloud location and posting a view link here.

    Why a sample file is important for troubleshooting

    - - - - - - - and how to do it.

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  5. Charles Kenyon 167.6K Reputation points Volunteer Moderator
    2022-09-23T20:05:43+00:00

    There are list styles and paragraph styles. You need to be using both. If you use automatic paragraph numbering or bullets read Shauna Kelly's directions on numbering and bullets. Start with How to create numbered headings or outline numbering in Word 2007 and Word 2010. For large documents you must follow these directions or you will lose your hair!
    (Mac version: https://www.brandwares.com/bestpractices/2016/06/outline-numbering-in-word-for-os-x/)

    This may seem a bit convoluted at first, but it really is not. Just follow the steps. Shauna Kelly's instructions use the built-in heading styles, but you can use any existing paragraph styles including your custom styles. There are, however advantages to using the built-in heading styles when you create a Table of Contents. Here are some more advantages: Why Use Word's Built-In Heading Styles? by Shauna Kelly Note, you can modify these built-in styles to look exactly the way you want.

    Videos on this

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=He_ob8ydc9E

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qbyTcWo52G4

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GevZOS-nCuw

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=niD6VXPvAyU

    The basic idea is that the numbering is set using the Define MultiLevel List dialog with each numbering level being attached to an existing paragraph style. Once you have this set up, you should not use the buttons for numbering in the Ribbon but rather apply the appropriate style for that level.

    You can save a document with this as a template for future documents if you want so you will not need to do this every time.

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