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MS Word : Symbols

 In Microsoft Word, the **Symbols** feature allows you to insert various special characters, symbols, and glyphs that are not readily available on the standard keyboard. Here’s a guide on how to use the **Symbols** feature:


### **Symbols**


1. **Description**:

   - The **Symbols** feature provides access to a wide range of special characters and symbols, including mathematical operators, currency signs, punctuation marks, and other unique characters.


2. **How to Use**:

   - **Access Symbols**:

     - Go to the **Insert** tab.

     - Click on the **Symbols** button in the **Symbols** group.

     - Select **Symbol** from the drop-down menu.


   - **Insert a Symbol**:

     - A dialog box will appear displaying various symbols. You can scroll through the list or select a category from the dropdown menu at the top.

     - Click on the symbol you want to insert.

     - Click **Insert** to add the symbol to your document.


   - **More Symbols**:

     - For additional symbols, click on **More Symbols** in the Symbols menu. This opens the **Symbol** dialog box where you can explore different font sets and character maps.

     - You can choose the font, subset, or character code to find specific symbols.


   - **Shortcut for Common Symbols**:

     - Some symbols may have keyboard shortcuts. For example, pressing **Alt** + **0153** on the numeric keypad inserts the trademark symbol (™).


3. **Common Uses**:

   - **Mathematical Symbols**: Inserting symbols like the plus-minus sign (±) or the square root symbol (√) for mathematical equations and expressions.

   - **Currency Symbols**: Adding symbols such as the euro (€) or yen (¥) to financial documents or reports.

   - **Special Characters**: Including special characters like the copyright symbol (©) or registered trademark symbol (®) in legal or formal documents.

   - **Accents and Diacritics**: Using characters with accents or diacritical marks for languages other than English.


### **Customizing Symbols**


1. **Character Map**:

   - For more advanced symbol insertion, you can use the **Character Map** application in Windows.

   - Open the Character Map by searching for it in the Start menu.

   - Browse or search for symbols, select the desired character, and copy it to the clipboard to paste into your Word document.


2. **AutoCorrect for Symbols**:

   - You can set up AutoCorrect options to replace certain text strings with symbols automatically.

   - Go to the **File** tab, select **Options**, then **Proofing**, and click on **AutoCorrect Options**.

   - In the AutoCorrect dialog box, you can define text shortcuts that will be automatically replaced with symbols.


The **Symbols** feature in Microsoft Word helps enhance documents by adding specialized characters that are not available through the regular keyboard, making your documents more professional and precise.

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