I have a footnote reference in a column, and I want the footnote to span both columns. Is this possible?

Article contributed by Suzanne Barnhill

A limitation of columns is that they don't play well with footnotes. Footnotes in a multicolumn document will be wrapped to the column width. Moreover, if the footnote occurs in a multicolumn section in a single-column document, that section will insist on being on a page by itself even though you have used Continuous Section Breaks before and after it.

The workaround for this is so clumsy that you may well decide it is not worth it, but if you must combine footnotes with columns and insist on full-width footnotes (and especially if the multicolumn section is part of a primarily single-column document), here's how to solve the problem:

1.

Insert the footnote in a single-column section as close as possible to the desired location of the actual footnote reference mark (so that the footnote will be on the same page and in the correct order).

2.

Where you want the footnote reference mark, insert a cross-reference to the number of the footnote you just inserted (Insert | Cross-reference | Reference type: Footnote; Insert reference to: Footnote number)*. If your Footnote Reference style is superscript (or has other specific formatting), choose "Footnote number (formatted)," and the cross-reference will be formatted the same as the actual footnote reference.

3.

Select the actual footnote reference mark (in the single-column text) and format it as Hidden (Ctrl+Shift+H). 

* Note that Word 2002 has different menus: it's Insert | Reference | Cross-reference | Reference type: Footnote; Insert reference to: Footnote number in Word 2002.

See also:

The strait and narrow – using columns

Why do my footnotes sometimes end up on a different page from their references in the text?

I want the numbers in my footnotes not to be superscripted, and I want the numbers to be followed by a dot and a tab


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