Math Autocorrect Shortcut in Ms Word: Equation Editor Shortcut

by C P Gupta
24 Comments
August 26, 2020March 30, 2024

Complete reference on equation editor shortcut for Ms Word

Equation is an integral part of many technical manuscripts, including thesis and research papers. However, typing it in Ms Word is cumbersome and tiring task. To ease it, Microsoft Word has LaTeX type equation editor shortcut feature for typing equation. These equation editor shortcut as termed as Math AutoCorrect and are available in versions of Microsoft Word 2007 and above.

Equation editor shortcut has a potential to save a lot of time and effort. For e.g., to get Greek letter $\alpha$ , you can type \alpha instead of going to Symbols in Insert Tab and searching for $\alpha$ .

Table of Contents

Enabling Math Autocorrect

Most version of Microsoft Word, Math AutoCorrect is enabled by default. To ensure you can visit, File Menu → Options → Proofing → Autocorrect Options → Math AutoCorrect and ensure box against “Replace text as you type” is checked. These shortcut work only inside Equation Editor. However, if you want to use it outside Equation Editor, then check “Use Math Autocorrect Rules outside of math regions“

Step by Step process to enable Math Autocorrect outside Math region in Ms Word — How to enable math autocorrect outside math region in Microsoft Word

Equation Editor Shortcut

Shortcut to get equation editor in Ms Word and Power Point is “Alt + =” (i.e. hold down Alt key while typing ‘=’). Although you can also click on “Equations” under the “Insert” Tab to get it.

Spaces is an important part of Math AutoCorrect shortcut. It tells Ms Word and Power Point when it is time to translate a part of equation into Mathematical Symbols/Operators. For clarity whenever necessary, space are shown as <sp> in Math AutoCorrect formula.

Subscript & Superscript

Equation editor shortcut for subscript and superscript is _ and ^. Anything after _ or ^ will get converted into subscript or superscript respectively, after hitting space. To include space in subscript or superscript, group them in () or parenthesis. These grouping parenthesis don’t appear after Math AutoCorrect. Grouping is also important as it distinguish between $a_i^2 \;$ and $a_{i^2} \;$ . While adding pre-subscript or pre-superscript, use \zwsp along with _ and ^ sign as shown below.

Use	For	Use	For
A_circle<sp>	$A_{circle}$	r^2<sp>	$r^2$
A_(big circle)<sp>	$A_{big \ circle}$	H^(2 square)<sp>	$H^{2\; square}$
r^2_outer<sp>	$r^2_{outer}$	r^2_(outer circle)	$r^{2}_{outer\;circle}$
\zwsp<sp>_c<sp>		\zwsp<sp>^c<sp>R
\zwsp<sp>_c^d<sp>R		\zwsp<sp>_c^d<sp>_e^f<sp>

Equation Editor Shortcut for Subscript and Superscript in Ms Word

Letters

Blackboard Bold letters or Double letters:

Use \doubleXX, where XX is the required uppercase letter for e.g. use \doubleA for $\mathbb{A}$ and \doubleR for $\mathbb{R}$ .

Fraktur letters

Fraktur is a calligraphic hand of the Latin alphabet. We can easily write it in Ms Word using \frakturXX where XX is an uppercase letter. For e.g. use Ms Word shortcut “\frakturB” for “ $\mathfrak{B}$ “ and “\frakturG” for “ $\mathfrak{G}$ “.

Greek letter

Greek letter has 24 different alphabets. There are four distinct ways of typing Greek alphabets in Microsoft Word. Of these, Math AutoCorrect method is the easiest to remember and the fastest of all four. This method of typing Greek letters is as easy as typing its spelling after \ (backslash). To get lower case Greek Alphabet, type name of Greek letter after \ in lower case (for e.g. \alpha for $\alpha$ ) and for upper case Greek Alphabet type name of Greek letter after \ in Title Case (e.g. \Gamma for $\Gamma$ ). You can also use Alt codes for typing Greek letters.

Name of Greek letter	Uppecase	Shortcut	Lowercase	Shortcut
Alpha	A	\Alpha	$\alpha$	\alpha
Beta	B	\Beta	$\beta$	\beta
Gamma	$\Gamma$	\Gamma	$\gamma$	\gamma
Delta	$\Delta$	\Delta	$\delta$	\delta
Epsilon	E	\Epsilon	$\epsilon$	\epsilon
Zeta	Z	\Zeta	$\zeta$	\zeta
Eta	H	\Eta	$\eta$	\eta
Theta	$\Theta$	\Theta	$\theta$	\theta
Iota	I	\Iota	$\iota$	\iota
Kappa	K	\Kappa	$\kappa$	\kappa
Lambda	$\Lambda$	\Lambda	$\lambda$	\lambda
Mu	M	\Mu	$\mu$	\mu
Nu	N	\Nu	$\nu$	\nu
Xi	$\Xi$	\Xi	$\xi$	\xi
Pi	$\Pi$	\Pi	$\pi$	\pi
Rho	P	\Rho	$\rho$	\rho
Sigma	$\Sigma$	\Sigma	$\sigma$	\sigma
Tau	T	\Tau	$\tau$	\tau
Upsilon	$\Upsilon$	\Upsilon	$\upsilon$	\upsilon
Phi	$\Phi$	\Phi	$\phi$	\phi
Chi	X	\Chi	$\chi$	\chi
Psi	$\Psi$	\Psi	$\psi$	\psi
Omega	$\Omega$	\Omega	$\omega$	\omega

Scientific and Mathematical Symbol Symbols

Equation editor shortcut for scientific and mathematical symbols like infinity, different arrows, operators (like partial, del and nabla), conditional symbols, dot, cross, mapsto, perpendicular, set symbols, for all, equivalent, congruent, angle, proportional etc are given in the following table.

Correct way to insert division sign in Ms Word — Correct way to insert multiplication and division symbols in Ms Word

Ms Word shortcut for inserting correct division symbol — Microsoft word shortcut for inserting division sign using Math Autocorrect

Symbol Name	Symbol	Ms Word Shortcut	Symbol Name	Symbol	Ms Word Shortcut
Infinity	∞	\infty	Hbar	ℏ	\hbar
Right Arrow	→	\rightarrow, ->	Left Arrow	←	\leftarrow
Up Arrow	↑	\uparrow	Down Arrow	↓	\downarrow
North-east Arrow	↗	\nearrow	North-west Arrow	↖	\nwarrow
South-east Arrow	↘	\searrow	South-west Arrow	↙	\swarrow
Left Right arrow	↔	\leftrightarrow	Up Down Arrow	↕	\updownarrow
Rightwards Double Arrow	⇒	\Rightarrow	Leftwards Double Arrow	⇐	\Leftarrow
Upwards Double Arrow	⇑	\Uparrow	Downwards Double Arrow	⇓	\Downarrow
Partial	∂	\partial	Nabla	∇	\nabla
Less Than Equal To	≤	\le	Greater Than Equal To	≥	\ge
Double Less Than	≪	\ll	Double Greater Than	≫	\gg
Times	𝑎 × 𝑏	a \times b	Tensor Product or O Times	𝑓(𝑡) ⊗ 𝑔(𝑡)	f(t)\otimes g(t)
Dot	𝑎 ⋅ 𝑏	a\cdot b	O Dot	𝑎 ⊙ 𝑏	a\odot b
O Plus	𝑥 ⊕ y	x\oplus y	O Minus	𝑥 ⊖ 𝑦	a\ominus y
Maps To	𝑎 ↦	a\mapsto b	Right Arrow with Hook	↪	\hookrightarrow
Dots	𝑎 … 𝑏	a\dots b	Center dots	𝑎 ⋯ 𝑏	a\cdots b
Perpendicular	𝑎 ⊥ 𝑏	a \bot b		𝑎 ⊤ 𝑏	a \top b
Intersection	𝐴⋂𝐵	A\bigcap B	Union	𝐴⋃𝐵	A \bigcup B
Big Square Cup	𝐴⨆𝐵	A\bigsqcup B	Big U with Plus	𝐴⨄𝐵	A \biguplus B
Star	𝑎 ⋆ 𝑏	a \star b	For All	∀	\forall
In	∈	\in	Exists	∃	\exists
Big Wedge	⋀	\bigwedge	Big Ve	⋁	\bigvee
Equiv	≡	\equiv	Congruent	≅	\cong
Not Equal To	≠	\ne	Approximately Equal	≈	\approx
Similar	∼	\sim	Similar To	≃	\simeq
Natural Joint of Bowtie	⋈	\bowtie	Box	□	\box
Subset	⊂	\subset	Empty Set	∅	\emptyset
Therefore	∴	\therefore	Because	∵	\because
Plus or minus	±	\pm or +-	Minus or plus	∓	\mp
Angle	∠	\angle	Proportional To	∝	\proto
Degree C	22 °C	22 \degc

Accent

For various reasons you need to have an accent like bar, grave, tilde, dot (for denoting derivative) above symbol. We can easily achieve these using following word shortcut.

Accent	For	Equation editor shortcut
Bar	$\overline{x}$	x\bar<sp>
Double bar	$\overline{\overline{x}}$	x\Bar<sp>
Under bar	$\underline{x}$	x\ubar<sp>
Double under bar	$\underline{\underline{x}}$	x\uBar<sp>
Acute	$\acute{x}$	x\acute<sp>
Grave	$\grave{x}$	x\grave<sp>
Vector	$\vec{x}$	x\vec<sp>
Hat	$\hat{x}$	x\hat<sp>
Left-right arrow	$\overleftrightarrow{x}$	x\tvec<sp>
Left harpoon	$\overset{\leftharpoonup}{x}$	x\lhvec<sp>
Right harpoon	$\overset{\rightharpoonup}{x}$	x\rhvec<sp>
Dot	$\dot{x}$	x\dot<sp>
Double dot	$\ddot{x}$	x\ddot<sp>
Triple dot	$\dddot{x}$	x\dddot<sp>
Four dot	$\overset{....}{x}$	x\ddddot<sp>
Breve	$\breve{x}$	x\breve<sp>
Check	$\check{x}$	x\check<sp>
Tilde	$\tilde{x}$	x\tilde<sp>
Left vector (or left arrow)	$\overleftarrow{x}$	x\lvec<sp>

Ms Word shortcut for Accents

Grouping and brackets

Equation editor causes brackets (such as [], {} and ()) to grow to fit the size of expression within them. However, parenthesis used for grouping are not displayed in the final formatted expression. However, when parenthesis is required to be displayed, it must be doubled (one for grouping which will vanish in final formatted expression and other for displaying). Escape sequence (\ followed by desired bracket is used to prevent bracket from being reformatted.

To Display	Use	Comment
$\frac{a}{y}$	x/y	/ is used for fraction
$\left[\frac{x}{y} \right ]$	[x/y]	[] bracket automatically expands to adjust fraction
$\left{\frac{x}{y} \right}$	{x/y}
$\left(\frac{x}{y} \right )$	(x/y)	Parentheses displayed as they not used for grouping
$\frac{a}{p+q}$	a/(p+q)	Parentheses used for grouping (denominator here) are not displayed
$\frac{a}{\left(p+q \right )}$	a/((p+q))	Parentheses used for grouping (denominator here) is not displayed
$[_a^b y$	[ a\atop b \close y
$\left\|\frac{p\|q\|r}{c+d}\right\|$	\|(p\|q\|r)/(c+d)\|	Again parentheses used for grouping are not displayed
$\|a\|b\left\|\frac{x}{a+b}\right\|$	\|a\|b\|x/(a+b)	Grouping parentheses not displayed
$\|\|a\|\|$	\norm a \norm

Brackets and grouping equation

Square root, Cube root, and more

Equation editor shortcut for square root, cube root and higher roots are \sqrt(), \cbrt() and \sqrt(n&x) respectively.

Symbol	Equation Editor Shortcut
$\sqrt{x}$	\sqrt(x)<sp>
$\sqrt[3]{x+1}$	\cbrt(x+1)<sp>
$\sqrt[n]{x + 1}$	\sqrt(n&x)<sp>

Equation Editor Shortcut for square root, cube root & nth root

For more shortcut and example on root sign, visit our blog on Shortcut for Square root, and higher order roots

Matrices

Empty Matrix

The basic equation editor shortcut for creating an empty matrix of custom size is \matrix(@@&&&)<sp>. Matrix size decided by number of @ (for rows) and & (for columns) respectively. Number of @ and & symbol is one less than number of rows and columns, respectively.

Fastest way to insert matrix in Microsoft Word using equation editor shortcut. — Animation of fastest way to insert matrix in Ms Word using equation editor shortcut.

Comparison of two methods to insert 4x4 or larger matrix in Word — Speed comparison of Two methods to insert 4×4 or larger matrix in Microsoft Word

Matrix with elements

You can also create matrix filled with elements using above shortcut. Using this method, we enter elements of the matrix row wise, starting with the top row. Use & to move to the next column and @ for the next row.

empty matrix shortcut word — Matrix Shortcut for Word

empty matrix in word — Matrix Shortcut for Word

For more details and example, visit our blog on different methods and equation editor shortcut for typing matrix in Ms Word.

Piece wise function

There are two ways to insert piece wise function in using Equation Editor shortcut in Ms Word. First one uses \cases() method while the second one uses \matrix(). In both the cases, desired piecewise functions are entered inside the parenthesis.

Like matrix, @ is used as a row separator. To get only the opening curly braces ‘{‘ which automatically extends the height of piecewise function, use \close in place of closing ‘}’.

example of piecewise function in word — Piecewise function in Word

piecewise function in word — Piecewise function in Word

Sr No	Equation Editor Shortcut	Note
1	f(x) = {\cases(x,x>=0@-x,x<0)\close	@ is used as row separator and \close is required to ensure opening { expands vertically to cover all cases
2	f(x) = {\matrix(x & x>=0@-x & x<0)\close	Similar to above, & is used as column separator
3	f(x) = {\matrix(x & x>=0@-x & x<0)	Without \close, opening ‘{‘ doesn’t expands

Integral, Sum and Product

Shortcut for integral sign, sum and product signs are \int, \sum and \prod. You can use _ and ^ for inserting text below and above signs, respectively.

\int{f(x)dx} — Ms Word shortcut for typing Integration, Sum and Product

\int_{x=0}^{1}f(x)dx — Ms Word shortcut for typing Integration, Sum and Product

Equation Editor Shortcut	Output	Note
\int<sp>f(x)dx	$\int{f(x)dx}$
\int_x=0^1<sp>f(x)dx	$\int_{x=0}^{1}f(x)dx$	_ for lower limit and ^ for upper limit
\iint<sp>f(x)dx	$\iint{f(x)dx}$	\iint for double integral
\iint\below(S)<sp>ds	$\iint\limits_Sds$	use \below to put text below symbol
\iiint\above(V)<sp><sp>dV	$\overset{V}{\iiint}dV$	use \above to put text above symbol
\oint<sp>f(x)dx	$\oint f(x)dx$	\oint for cyclic integral, similarly use \oiint for cyclic double Sum, integral
\sum_(i=1)^n<sp>A_i<sp>	$\sum_{i=1}^n A_i$	\sum_(i=1)^n<sp>A_i<sp>\sum for sum symbol and _ & ^ sign for getting text below and above sum. Parenthesis can be used for grouping text with spaces
\prod_(n=0)^N<sp>x^n<sp>	$\prod_{n=0}^N x^n$	Similar to sum.

Conclusion

Math Autocorrect shortcut provides useful shortcuts for typing most of the mathematical expression. They are often the fastest and efficient way of typing equation in Ms Word.

C P Gupta

C P Gupta is a YouTuber and Blogger. He is expert in Microsoft Word, Excel and PowerPoint. His YouTube channel @pickupbrain is very popular and has crossed 9.9 Million Views.

24 thoughts on “Math Autocorrect Shortcut in Ms Word: Equation Editor Shortcut”

spiritual benefits of bitter kola October 2, 2020 at 12:42 pm
Reply
I cannot thank you enough for the article. Much thanks again. Cool!.
Edirisooriya November 26, 2020 at 10:15 am
Reply
Thank you is not enough for the knowledge you have shared. Keep on doing your good work.
Thank you very much indeed.
Elias February 16, 2021 at 11:15 pm
Reply
Thank you so much. This is super helpful to me.
ES March 26, 2021 at 6:27 pm
Reply
Just brilliant. Thank you so much and may your tribe increase.
1. pickupbr March 26, 2021 at 10:34 pm
  Reply
  Glad you liked it.
Seth Odoom July 8, 2021 at 1:12 pm
Reply
Very helpful. This is what I have been struggling with all this time. Thank you.
1. pickupbr July 10, 2021 at 7:25 pm
  Reply
  Thanks very much dear for the comment. Glad you liked it.
Franco July 19, 2021 at 8:47 pm
Reply
Thank you very much, I’m at Word 2016 and my accent shortcuts doesn’t work, if I write x\bar it’ll do x ̅ instead of ̅x ̅
1. pickupbr July 21, 2021 at 12:25 pm
  Reply
  You should press space twice. First space is to convert \bar to bar sign and other to put under x. Thanks for highlighting this mistake I will update it.
Jennifer Seymour October 20, 2021 at 11:57 pm
Reply
Hello, is there a way to do an arc symbol? Like “breve” but with the accent flipped?
Adekunle Olumayowa December 1, 2021 at 1:09 pm
Reply
Wow!!! I can’t believe typing mathematical equations can be made easy like this. This is first hand help for everyone that has been depending on mouse for insertion of symbols, equations and its structures. Lots of thank you to the author or writer of this blog.
1. pickupbr December 6, 2021 at 7:12 pm
  Reply
  Thanks dear for the feedback. Yes, this feature is really awesome and saves lots of time while inserting equations.
2. pickupbr March 2, 2024 at 11:04 am
  Reply
  Glad to know that it was useful. Please share this to your friends and colleagues who may be interested to know this.
UPA February 18, 2022 at 11:43 pm
Reply
Thank you very much. Highly appreciated
1. pickupbr March 3, 2022 at 9:34 pm
  Reply
  Thanks dear. Glad to know that.
2. pickupbr March 2, 2024 at 11:03 am
  Reply
  Thanks!
wowza February 27, 2022 at 9:10 pm
Reply
this has changed my life and so much time and I really appreciate everything you’re doing here
– stat major in college
1. pickupbr March 3, 2022 at 9:33 pm
  Reply
  Thanks dear for the appreciation. Glad to know it helped.
2. pickupbr March 2, 2024 at 11:03 am
  Reply
  Thanks dear. Glad to know it was useful.
Nguyễn Hoàng Long March 11, 2022 at 9:15 am
Reply
You save my day! I’m so tired of using the mouse to click on the icon in Equation tab, it takes me forever to switch constantly between my mouse and keyboards. I never know that all I need to do is typing right from the keyboards. Thank you so much for this helpful and easy to understand article. Good luck to you!
1. pickupbr March 13, 2022 at 3:12 pm
  Reply
  Thanks dear for the comment. Glad to know that it was helpful.
Pingback: Ms Word shortcut & Unicode for symbols used in Maths & Science
Pingback: How to Type the Standard Deviation Symbol (σ) in Microsoft Word - PickupBrain: Be Smart
Sarit September 9, 2024 at 8:45 pm
Reply
Thank you so much, Gupta, for this article.
It’s on my bookmarks, and I go back to it regularly to learn more.
I have a question: I want to write an equation where the LHS contains a text with three short rows, and the RHS is a regular equation. Is there a way to do it?
Thank you again,
Sarit

Sr. No.	Equation Editor Shortcut	Output Matrix
1	\matrix(@@&)
2	\pmatrix(@@&) or (\matrix(@@&)
3	\Vmatrix(@@&)
4	[\matrix(1&2&3@4&5&6@7&8&9)]
5	\pmatrix(1&2@3&4@5&6)