Microsoft IT Showcase
Using equations in Office 2016
Overview
Office 2016 applications, such as PowerPoint, Word,
OneNote, Outlook, and Excel, include equations that
you can drop into your documents—no formatting
required. If the built-in equations don’t meet your
needs, you can modify them or you can build your
own sophisticated equation from scratch.
With the ink-to-math feature in Office 2016, you can
also write out equations with your stylus, finger, or
mouse, and the application will convert them to text.
(If you don't have a touch device, you can use a
mouse to write, too). You can also erase, select, and
correct what you've written as you go.
Write an equation
1. Select Insert > Equation within the Symbols
group, and choose the equation you want from
the gallery.
2. If you’d rather start from scratch, enter Alt+= or
choose Insert New Equation at the bottom of
the gallery.
3. After you insert the equation or the placeholder
for your new equation, the Equation Tools
Design tab opens with many symbols and
options for customizing and adding to your
equation. Select the equation whenever you want
the tab to reappear.
NOTE: You can also select the equation
and then select the arrow next to it to
save it as a new equation, move it from
inline to center.
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Convert ink to an
equation
1. Select Insert > Equation > Ink Equation.
2. Use a stylus or your finger to write a math
equation by hand. If you're not using a touch
device, use your mouse to write out the equation.
You can select portions of the equation and edit
them as you go, and use the preview box to make
sure Word is correctly interpreting your
handwriting.
3. When you're satisfied, select Insert to convert the
ink equation to an equation in your document.
Change an equation
To edit a mathematical equation that was written in
Office 2016, just select in the equation. The Equation
Tools tab will appear on the ribbon.
NOTE: If you don’t see the Equation
Tools, the equation may have been
created in an older version of Office. If so,
save your file to convert it to the updated
version (Select File > Save as > updated
version).
 In the Symbols group under the Equation Tools
Design tab, you’ll find math related symbols. To
see all the symbols, select the More button . To
see other sets of symbols, select the arrow in the
upper-right corner of the gallery.
May 2017
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 The Structures group provides structures you

can insert. Just choose a structure to insert it and
then replace the placeholders, the small dotted-
line boxes, with your own values.
 In the More menu next to the equation, the
Professional option displays the equation as a
two-dimensional value. The Linear option
displays the equation so it fits on one line.

For more information

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Microsoft Office Support

support.office.com

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microsoft.com/itshowcase May 2017