Linear format is a representation of math on one line in documents. There are two linear formats for math that Word supports:.

• Unicode math

• LaTeX math

Depending on your preferred input format, you can create equations in Word in either one of UnicodeMath or LaTeX formats by selecting the format from the Equations tab. 

Note: All the other Office applications support only UnicodeMath linear format.

To create a fraction using these different formats with subscript,

• Enter your equation using Alt + = on the keyboard.

• Choose Convert and select professional to build your typed fractions to their Professional form into subscripts, or use Ctrl + =. You can similarly convert an equation back down to a linear format with Ctrl + Shift + =. 

  

Examples

Note: Convert a professional format equation format to it’s source format, change the convert tool to build a linear format by selecting the desired option from the Convert menu.

UnicodeMath resembles real mathematical notation the most in comparison to all of the math linear formats, and it is the most concise linear format, though some may prefer editing in the LaTeX input over UnicodeMath since that is widely used in academia. 

You can type most equations in UnicodeMath quickly by using Math AutoCorrect codes. For example, to align an equation array, you can use @ and &, as in the following:

eqarray(x+1&=2@1+2+3+y&=z@3/x&=6)

which resolves to:

Here are some other examples:

Example	UnicodeMath format	Built-up format
Vectors	(abc)vec
	(abc)hat
Boxed formula	rect(a/b)
Brackets	(a+b/c)
	{a+b/c}
Brackets with separators	{a/bvbarx+yvbar}
Fractions	a/(b+c)
LeftSubSup	_a^bx
Limit	lim_(n->infty)n
Matrix	(matrix(a&b@&c&d))
Nary	iint_(a=0)^inftya
Over/Underbar	overbar(abc)
	overbrace(a+b)
Radicals	sqrt(5&a^2)

Note: When an example is followed by two consecutive spaces, the first space resolves the typed text into the equation, and the second space builds it up.

Microsoft Office uses the linear format described in Unicode Technical Note 28 to build up and display mathematical expressions. For more information, including how to quickly type up and build equations, see Unicode Nearly Plain-Text Encoding of Mathematics.

LaTeX equation editing supports most of the common LaTeX mathematical keywords. To create a 3×3 matrix equation in the LaTeX format, type the following into a math zone:

A={matrix{a&b&c\d&e&f\g&h&j}}

This will build into the following professional equation:

Here are some other examples of LaTeX expressions that can be built-up into a professional format.

Most LaTeX expressions are supported in this new feature to Word; a list of exceptions is provided below for LaTeX keywords that are not currently supported.

Some LaTeX expressions take a slightly different syntax than might be expected.

For example, LaTeX matrices are often created using the following syntax: 

begin{matrix} a & b \ c & d end{matrix}

However begin{} and end{} keywords are not supported in Word, so instead, a LaTeX matrix input takes simply matrix{} and would look like:

matrix{a & b \ c & d}

Office has Math AutoCorrect that can be used to make UnicodeMath format simpler by automatically recognizing expressions and symbols as they are input and converting them to a professional format as the equation is created. This setting can be enabled or disabled by checking the appropriate box in the Equation Options dialog. 

Type one of the following codes followed by a delimiting term. For example, after you type a code, type a punctuation mark, or press SPACEBAR or ENTER.

To ensure that the Math AutoCorrect symbols appear the same in your document as they do in the AutoCorrect dialog box, on the Home tab, in the Font group, select Cambria Math.

Important: The codes are case-sensitive.

To get	Type
	…
	above
	aleph
	alpha
	Alpha
	amalg
	angle
	approx
	asmash
	ast
	asymp
	atop
	bar
	Bar
	begin
	below
	bet
	beta
	Beta
	bot
	bowtie
	box
	bra
	breve
	bullet
	cap
	cbrt
	cdot
	cdots
	check
	chi
	Chi
	circ
	close
	clubsuit
	coint
	cong
	cup
	dalet
	dashv
	dd
	Dd
	ddddot
	dddot
	ddot
	ddots
	degree
	delta
	Delta
	diamond
	diamondsuit
	div
	dot
	doteq
	dots
	downarrow
	Downarrow
	dsmash
	ee
	ell
	emptyset
	end
	epsilon
	Epsilon
	eqarray
	equiv
	eta
	Eta
	exists
	forall
	funcapply
	gamma
	Gamma
	ge
	geq
	gets
	gg
	gimel
	hat
	hbar
	heartsuit
	hookleftarrow
	hookrightarrow
	hphantom
	hvec
	ii
	iiint
	iint
	Im
	in
	inc
	infty