#  Other Applications & Softwares  > Word Formatting & General >  > [SOLVED] How to insert text above a table

## JulianS96

Hi Forum,
Usually insetting text above a table is very easy in Word.You just click twice above the table and the pointer appears at the nearest line you clicked on.
I have made a Decision Matrix, desensitised it, but cannot for the life of me add any text above the table, only below.
For some reason i can click som eblack arrows pointing downwards referencing the column of the table (So it's as if the table is extending the entire length of the page.)

Please help. Find attached a doc representing this exact problem.
Cheers,
Julian

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## jeffreybrown

Hi Julian,

I'm afraid I do not see that problem. I opened your file and placed text directly above your table.  Turn on the paragraph marks (Ctrl + Shift + *) and you should see a paragraph mark directly above the table.

If you still can't add text above the table, make the text part of the table.  Right click on the first row of the table and insert a row above.

Now merge the new row and then add your text.  You can also format that new first row to hide all the borders except for the bottom one.

The look will show text, but because of no borders in will appear as if the text is above the table.

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## JulianS96

Hi Jeff, 
Thank you very much for the speedy response. How strange that word is "behaving" on your end...
Still the same for me.
I can't insert any text above at all. Plu si alway shave th eparagraph marking tool on. Helps with format so much (and a lot of time goes into it!)
I'll paste a picture of what i'm gettin at the moment.
Very annoying.
Also not sure what you mean by your proposed solution?
EDIT: I do know what you mean. Is there any way to just insert text plain and simpe above the table. I have no idea why this is happenng "it has never happened to me before until now"

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## jeffreybrown

Take a look at this

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## JulianS96

thanks again for the speedy replies!  :Smilie: 
Ah ok. That could work I suppose.
To throw another curveball, however, the reason I want a gap above the table for text is that I want to put a sub-header there.
Is this possible in this format?
Also I should have made clear that the table that I cannot get text to abear above on is the one called Decision Matrix.

Also I made a bit of a bad mistake. I included the company name and disclaimer and title. Let me just get rid of all of that. and if you could as well please.
Thanks  :Smilie:

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## jeffreybrown

Not entirely sure what you mean by "sub-header" and what that would look like.

Try with the file I posted, highlight the new row 1 and then convert in to text.  Now you have a space above your table.

I'm guessing this is just an oddity with this one Word file, so in essence, this is a one-off.

Also, for ease of use the next time, always add a space or two and then add a table.  Helps migrate this kind of wrinkle from the beginning.

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## JulianS96

Hi Jeffrey. Still no dice I'm afraid. Can't get text to appear above the decision matrix table...
By Sub-header I mean like "5.1.1 -> This is a table"
That kind of subheader. and then some text to talk about the table before it is pasted in.

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## jeffreybrown

So are you just starting with 5.1.1 or has stuff come before this table?

My first thought is to use paragraph numbering, but I don't know what else you are doing in your document.

Can you post the attachment and not a picture?  Also, are you saying you cannot insert a row above row 1?

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## JulianS96

I'm inserting a picture as apparently for you it works fine and that you CAN insert text above the "Decision Matrix" Table shown above. *This picture is a screenshot from your document by the way, I just removed the company logo and disclaimer from it* 
If it's working for you would you mind posting a screenshot of some text above the "Decision Matrix" Table?
And the best outcome would be if you can change that text into a heading by pressing the heading button.
Cheers Jeffrey

EDIT: To clear up on the fact that it starts at 5.1.1
This has been taken directly from a full document with 30 pages, and I have simply copied and pasted this into a fresh document, and desensitised the data, in order to replicate the error.

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## jeffreybrown

Is this what you are looking for?

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## JulianS96

Hi Jeffrey. 
I'm afraid that's not the table I mean.
I mean the table that says *DECISION MATRIX* in capital letters on the top left box. (as shown in Post #7)
I can't get text to appear above the table there.
Cheers for your help so far!

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## jeffreybrown

Sorry, I did not scroll down far enough in your document.  :Frown:

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## JulianS96

I am highly confused as to why it won't let me add text above the table...
Or did you insert a new row above the top row and then merge cells and then edit text?
Is it possible for you to just double click in the white space above the "* DECISION MATRIX* " Table? Or does it show up as a black downwards arrow for you as well?

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## jeffreybrown

I just inserted the text in the row that was already there.

Yes.  If I try to go above the table, there is no above. It is plumb up to the top of the page.

Only way I can see to do it is as I describe above.  Insert a row above.

There is something wacky in that document I can't see.  Also, your table is spilling over the margins.  Highlight the table >> right click >> AutoFit >> AutoFit to window.

I'm not saying it will make a difference, just pointing out you've set margins as .5 but yet the table is wider than those margins.

This document does not appear to be too long, so maybe scrap it and stuff from a fresh canvas.

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## JulianS96

I was hoping it wouldn't come to that. 
As is with a lot of my word documents. Just scrap it an rewrite/recopy paste the etxt into a new table.
Ok thanks anyway jeffrey you've been a star!
I'll speak tomorrow as I've finished work now. But if you do manage to find what that wackiness is in the document please let me know  :Smilie:

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## jeffreybrown

I will do so and you are very welcome.  Thanks for the feedback/rep.

Don't forget to mark as solved.

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## macropod

The table attached to the document in your first post already has an empty paragraph above it - with the Caption style applied. Hence, the process for inserting a paragraph break before a table at the top of the document won't work.

FWIW, inserting a paragraph break before a table at the top of the document is as simple as pressing the Enter key at the start of the table.

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## JulianS96

Hi macropod,
Is there anyway to fix this problem?
I've read online that it might be to do with the fact that I have started a table without outting in a paragragh first and the page break or section break is stopping that from happening?
Very strange glitch caused as a result.

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## macropod

> Is there anyway to fix this problem?



As far as I can tell, the only 'problem' is that you're trying to fix something that isn't broken. As I said:




> The table attached to the document in your first post already has an empty paragraph above it - with the Caption style applied.



Turn on the formatting display (e.g. by pressing the ¶ symbol on the Ribbon's Home tab) and it'll be as plain as the nose on your face.




> I've read online that it might be to do with the fact that I have started a table without outting in a paragragh first and the page break or section break



Completely irrelevant for the attachment to your post. It can be a problem _after_ a page break or section break - and nothing has changed in that regard - but that isn't the case with your attachment.

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## JulianS96

Hey Macropod.
Yes I get that noone elese seems to experience the problem except from me.
See post #7 for the screenshot of what i experience when I right click above the table.
I get a _Black downwards arrow_ that appears when I try to click above the table and insert text...
Nothing that I try to do can make text appear above.
Even when I press CTRL+SHIFT+ENTER, it still puts the new paragrah line *BELOW* the table. So frustrating!
For re-reference, here is the troubled document again.

EDIT 2: Ah ok I see your point.
That "sub heading" text is actually INTEGRATED in the table, just with border line off on both sides and above it.
This is bad as it means I cannot format or move the text whereever I wnat it easily.
Check the revised document showing the borders of this text.

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## macropod

That can only be because the table you attached is not formatted the way your real table is. The most likely difference is that, whereas the table in your attachment has no text wrapping, your real table has 'around' text wrapping. You can expect a solution that applies to what you attached to work the same way in a document that has such a fundamental change in formatting. The simple solution for your real table would be to drag it to a lower position on the page - or turn off the text wrapping.

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## JulianS96

Not sure how else to explain it other than using screenshots from steps recorder...
Here is what I'm getting before and after pushing the table downwards.
Hurrah, a paragraph line appears. But what is that *unnessecary gap that is appearing between the line and the top of the table, and that black arrow too*
Any ideas?

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## jeffreybrown

That black arrow is the arrow is see when selecting a column in the table.  Seems normal to me.




```
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Sorry, but I still do not know what this is.

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## macropod

> Hurrah, a paragraph line appears. But what is that *unnessecary gap that is appearing between the line and the top of the table*



Well that too depends on your document's formatting. And since you seem determined not to provide an attachment that reflects the formatting of the actual document you're using, no-one here can tell you.

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## JulianS96

> Well that too depends on your document's formatting. And since you seem determined not to provide an attachment that reflects the formatting of the actual document you're using, no-one here can tell you.



I will reattach the same, unedited, document again. (I lied, I added a big yellow highlighted bit of text where the text is currently "allowed" to sit.)
Please take a look.
If you don't experience formatting issues and say it is fine however, then that is not OK.
That, is the reason why those screenshots are there to demonstrate *WHAT* exactly the *SAME* document is on *MY* end.

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## macropod

You really should pay more attention to how you've formatted the paragraphs in your table. Every row except the first has:
 'keep lines together'; and
 'keep with next',
applied. So all those rows have to go on the same page as the paragraph that follows the table...

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## JulianS96

I copy pasted the table in from excel and then modified it so it fit the page better.
So I have no idea why the "keep lines together" or "keep with next" settings should be off for row 1...
What would the solution be to fix this problem knowing that?

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## macropod

As I said, those are attributes of the paragraph formatting. See under Home|Paragraph>Line and Page Breaks.

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## JulianS96

Well well well! Oh MY GOD!
I have managed to fix it!
I changed the "Text Wrapping" of the table from "Around" to "None" and then back to "Around" and it just fixed the gap instantly!!!
Check it out!
EDIT: I also made sure there was a "page break" function where the sectional break was.
EDIT 2: That was also the correct fix for my official document with 30 pages!

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## macropod

That's because you've moved the table higher up the page, not because you've fixed the paragraph formatting...

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## JulianS96

I didn't touch the table. I just right clicked the table from the top left corner, changed text wrapping from around to none, then back to around again.
It then automatically jumped upwards.

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## macropod

> I didn't touch the table.



Indeed you did, when you:




> right clicked the table from the top left corner, changed text wrapping from around to none, then back to around again.

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## JulianS96

> That's because you've moved the table higher up the page, not because you've fixed the paragraph formatting...



I didn't drag the table down though as you suggested. "Move (ing)" the table requires dragging it around to a different location on the page with a mouse.
Anyway. This is a null argument. 
The solution is present. No need to continue the sword fight.

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## macropod

> "Move (ing)" the table requires dragging it around to a different location on the page with a mouse.



That simply isn't true when you change the text wrapping. It's not a question of fighting, it's a question of you _understanding_ what's going on. And you still haven't fixed the underlying problem - which will re-emerge as soon as you add a few more rows to the table.

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## RoobyDooby

The problem is that your table is at the top of the page, without a line for text above it. Perform the following:

1. Place cursor in top left cell of your table.
2. In the ribbon, go to Table Tools > Layout and select Split Table.

You should now have a line for normal text above your table.

*EDIT* - I didn't realize I wasn't seeing the entire thread when I posted this response.  And as it turns out, macropod's solution of pressing Enter while in the top-left cell does in fact add a line above the table (which I didn't know).

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