1 with a circle around it in word


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This wikiHow teaches you how to add a circled number (also known as an “enclosed alphanumeric”) to your Microsoft Word document.

Steps

  1. Image titled Circle a Number on Microsoft Word Step 1

    1

    Open Microsoft Word. If you’re using Windows, click the Windows menu, select Microsoft Office, then Microsoft Word. If you’re using a Mac, you should find the Microsoft Word icon on the dock or launchpad.

  2. Image titled Circle a Number on Microsoft Word Step 2

    2

    Click Insert. It’s at the top of the screen.

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  3. Image titled Circle a Number on Microsoft Word Step 3

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    Click Symbol. You’ll see it on the panel at the top of the screen, toward the right.

  4. Image titled Circle a Number on Microsoft Word Step 4

    4

    Click More Symbols….

  5. Image titled Circle a Number on Microsoft Word Step 5

    5

    Click the “Font” drop-down menu. It’s near the top of the window.

  6. Image titled Circle a Number on Microsoft Word Step 6

    6

    Select Arial Unicode MS.

  7. Image titled Circle a Number on Microsoft Word Step 7

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    Click the “Subset” drop-down menu. It’s right next to the “Font” menu.

  8. Image titled Circle a Number on Microsoft Word Step 8

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    Select Enclosed Alphanumerics.

  9. Image titled Circle a Number on Microsoft Word Step 9

    9

    Click the circled number you want to add.

  10. Image titled Circle a Number on Microsoft Word Step 10

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    Click Insert. The circled number now appears in your Word document.

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Sometimes you may need to insert numbers or letters with circles in Word document, but you can’t type them directly or copy them from Internet every time. So how to insert circled numbers and letters in Word exactly?

To answer this question, I’ll share the detailed steps in the post. You can have a try following this guide.

Insert Circled Numbers from Symbol

1. One of the most commonly used way to insert circled numbers or letters is using Symbol.

2. Go to Insert tab, click Symbol and choose More Symbols… in the drop-down list.

3 Methods to Insert Circled Numbers and Letters in Word

3. Choose Windings, Windings 2 or Wingdings 3 as the font in Symbols tab, then scroll down to find the circled numbers. Click Insert to add the specified number to your document.

3 Methods to Insert Circled Numbers and Letters in Word

4. Note: you can only insert numbers from 1-10 with circles in this way. So if you want to insert larger numbers or letters with circles, please try the second method.

Insert Circled Number or Letter Using Enclose Characters

There’s a feature called Enclose Characters in Word, you can make use of it to insert circled numbers as well as letters.

1. Switch to Home tab, click the icon of Enclose Characters in Font section.

3 Methods to Insert Circled Numbers and Letters in Word

2. Enter the number or text you want to add circle in the textbox, then make the choice of Style and Enclosure. Click OK to implement it.

3 Methods to Insert Circled Numbers and Letters in Word

3. You can also select the existing letter in advance and click Enclose Characters to circle it. But don’t forget the maximum number of characters you can circle is 2.

4. As for circling 2 characters, like 2 letters or numbers larger than 9, you’ll find the result isn’t very well even if you choose Enlarge symbol in Style.

3 Methods to Insert Circled Numbers and Letters in Word

5. To make it looks better, you can press [Alt+F9] to switch to field mode. The circled number I just entered will be displayed as below:

3 Methods to Insert Circled Numbers and Letters in Word

6. The circle and the number are both in the parentheses, you can select the number to shrink its size.

3 Methods to Insert Circled Numbers and Letters in Word

7. It’s not enough cause the number will still be on the lower part of the circle. To raise its position, you can select the number and click the small arrow at the lower right corner of Font section in Home tab.

3 Methods to Insert Circled Numbers and Letters in Word

8. Switch to Advanced in the popping out Font window, choose Raised in the drop-down list of Position and click OK.

3 Methods to Insert Circled Numbers and Letters in Word

9. Then you can press [Alt+F9] to check the result. If it can still not satisfy you, just keep switching the mode to make adjustments till it finally looks good.

3 Methods to Insert Circled Numbers and Letters in Word

Insert a Circle Shape and Add Text to It

This method is not that frequently used, but it still works under certain circumstance. For example, if you want to circle more than 2 characters, the normal means may not help at all while this one does.

1. Switch to Insert tab, click Shapes and choose the oval shape in the list.

3 Methods to Insert Circled Numbers and Letters in Word

2. Hold your [Shift] key while dragging mouse to draw the shape. It will help you to draw a perfect circle instead of oval.

3 Methods to Insert Circled Numbers and Letters in Word

3. You can drag the vertices of it to move or resize it, but don’t forget holding [Shift] while resizing it, otherwise it will become oval again.

4. And if the color isn’t right, just double click the circle to enable Drawing Tools, you can change the setting in Shape Fill and Shape Outline.

3 Methods to Insert Circled Numbers and Letters in Word

5. Then right click the circle and choose Add Text in the menu.

3 Methods to Insert Circled Numbers and Letters in Word

6. A textbox will be created inside the circle, you can type any text in it and adjust its font and size.

3 Methods to Insert Circled Numbers and Letters in Word

But you can do very little to adjust the text added in this way – you can’t even move it freely.

Instead, you can try changing the text into WordArt in advance.

7. Click WordArt in Insert tab to choose a style and type the text in the textbox.

3 Methods to Insert Circled Numbers and Letters in Word

8. Then you can freely resize and move the new created WordArt to adapt the circle.

3 Methods to Insert Circled Numbers and Letters in Word

9. Circled numbers and letters created in this way allow you to adjust them freely, but you must make corresponding changes to both the circle and the WordArt inside it, since they won’t match with each other automatically.

3 Methods to Insert Circled Numbers and Letters in Word

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In today’s article, you’ll learn how to use keyboard shortcuts to type the A with circle or ring on top (å or Å) anywhere like Word/Excel using Windows or Mac.

Just before we begin, I’ll like to tell you that you can also use the button below to copy and paste the A with ring above into your work for free.

However, if you just want to type this symbol on your keyboard, the actionable steps below will show you how.

A with Circle above [å or Å] Quick Guide

To type the A with circle on Mac, press Option + A for lowercase and Option + Shift + A for Uppercase. For Windows users, simply press down the Alt key and type 0229 or 0197 using the numeric keypad, then let go of the Alt key.

These shortcuts can work on any software including MS Word, Excel, and PowerPoint, on both Windows and Mac.

Below table contains all the shortcuts you need to type the A with circle on keyboard for both Mac and Windows.

Symbol Name A with ring above
Symbol å or Å
Alt Code 1 0229 or 0197
Alt Code 2 134 or 143
Shortcut 1 (win) Alt+0229 or 0197
Shortcut 2 (win) Alt+134 or 143
Shortcut for Mac [Option] + [A]
Shortcut in Word (1) 00C5, Alt+X
Shortcut in Word (2) [Ctrl] + [@] , [a]
illustration of a with a circle on top with keyboard

The above quick guide provides some useful shortcuts and alt codes on how to type the A with circle Sign on both Windows and Mac. However, below are some other methods you can also use to insert this symbol into your work such as Word or Excel document.

Type A with Ring above [å or Å] symbol in Word/Excel/Windows/Mac

Microsoft Office provides several methods for typing A with ring above or inserting symbols that do not have dedicated keys on the keyboard.

In this section, I will make available for you five different methods you can use to type or insert the A with circle Sign on your PC, like in MS Office (ie. Word, Excel, or PowerPoint) for both Mac and Windows users.

Without any further ado, let’s get started.

Using the A with circle Alt Code (Windows Only)

The A with circle alt code is 0229 for lowercase and 0197 for uppercase. Even though the A with ring above does not have a dedicated key on the keyboard, you can still type it on the keyboard with the Alt code method. To do so, press and hold the Alt key whilst pressing the A circle Alt code (0229 or 0197) using the numeric keypad.

This method works on Windows only. And your keyboard must also have a numeric keypad.

a with circle alt code for lowercase and uppercase

Below is a break-down of the steps you can take to type the A with circle Sign on your Windows PC:

  • Place your insertion pointer where you need to type A with ring above.
  • Press and hold one of the Alt keys on your keyboard.
  • Whilst holding on to the Alt key, press the A with ring alt code (0229 or 0197 ). You must use the numeric keypad to type the alt code. If you are using a laptop without the numeric keypad, this method may not work for you. On some laptops, there’s a hidden numeric keypad which you can enable by pressing Fn+NmLk on the keyboard.
  • Release the Alt key after typing the A circle Sign Alt code to insert the Symbol into your document.
illustration of a with a circle on top with keyboard

This is how you may type this symbol in Word using the Alt Code method.

Using the A with circle Shortcut (Mac and Windows)

The keyboard shortcut for the A with circle is Option + A on Mac. For Windows users, use the Alt Code method by pressing down the [Alt] key whilst typing the A with circle alt code which is 0229 or 0197. You must use the numeric keypad to type the alt code. Also, ensure that your Num Lock is turned on.

a with circle shortcut for both Windows and Mac

Below is a breakdown of the A with circle shortcut for Mac:

  • First of all, place the insertion pointer where you need to type the A with ring above (å or Å).
  • Now, press Option + A simultaneously on your keyboard to insert the symbol.
  • For Uppercase A with circle, press Option + Shift + A.
a with circle Mac shortcut

Below is a breakdown of the A with circle shortcut for Windows:

  • Place the insertion pointer at the desired location.
  • Press and hold down the Alt key
  • While pressing down the Alt key, type 0229 or 0197 using the numeric keypad to insert the symbol.
  • Alternatively, on MS Word, type 00C5, highlight it and press Alt+X on your keyboard. The code 00C5 will be converted into Å.
  • Another shortcut for MS Word is [Ctrl] + [@] , [a]. You can type this shortcut by press Ctrl+Shift+2 simultaneously, then release them and press the letter a.

These are the steps you may use to type A with circle in Word or Excel.

Copy and Paste A with circle Sign

Another easy way to get the A with circle on any PC is to use my favorite method: copy and paste.

All you have to do is to copy the symbol from somewhere like a web page, or the character map for windows users, and head over to where you need the symbol (say in Word or Excel), then hit Ctrl+V to paste.

Below is the symbol for you to copy and paste into your Word document. Just select it and press Ctrl+C to copy, switch over to Microsoft Word, place your insertion pointer at the desired location and press Ctrl+V to paste.

Å

Alternatively, just use the copy button at the beginning of this post.

For windows users, obey the following instructions to copy and paste the A with ring above using the character map dialog box.

  • Click on the Start button and search for Character Map. The Character Map app will appear in the search results, click to open.
search for character map on windows
  • The Character Map dialog will appear. Click to check the Advanced view check-box to expand the dialog box for more advanced options.
Check the Advanced view checkbox to expand the dialog
  • On the advanced view, type a with ring above in the Search box.
  • You should now see the A with circle on the character map dialog. If you can’t see it, then you should look through the library of symbols to spot it. When found, double click it to select. Alternatively, click on the Select button.
  • After you select the symbol by double-clicking it, it should appear in the Character to copy: field, then click on the Copy button to copy the symbol.
copy and paste a with circle on top
  • Switch to your Microsoft Word or Excel document, place the insertion pointer at the desired location, and press Ctrl+V to paste.

This is how you may use the Character Map dialog to copy and paste any symbol on Windows PC.

Using insert Symbol dialog box (Word, Excel, PowerPoint)

The insert symbol dialog box is a library of symbols from where you can insert any symbol into your Word document with just a couple of mouse clicks.

Obey the following steps to insert the A with circle in Word using the insert symbol dialog box.

  • Open your Word document.
  • Click to place the insertion pointer where you wish to insert the symbol.
  • Go to the Insert tab.
Click on the Insert tab
  • In the Symbols category, click on the Symbol drop-down and select the More Symbols button.
Go to Symbols>More Symbols
  • The Symbol dialog box will appear. In the Subset drop-down list, select Latin-1 Supplement to display symbols in this category which includes the A with Ring above.
  • Select the symbol and click on the Insert button. Alternatively, double click on the symbol to insert it into your Word document.
insert a with ring in Word or Excel
  • Close the dialog.

The symbol will then be inserted exactly where you placed the insertion pointer.

These are the steps you may use to insert the A with circle in Word.

Conclusion

As you can see, there are several different methods you can use to type the A with circle Sign in Microsoft Word.

Using the shortcuts for both Windows and Mac makes the fastest option for this task. Shortcuts are always fast.

Thank you very much for reading this blog.

If you have anything thing to say or questions to ask concerning the A with circle, please drop it in the comments.

Thank you

You may want to place a circle around a certain letter or number in your MS Word document. This may be to emphasize an important point in the document. It may also be to simply decorate the text.

  • Use the Oval Tool
  • Use the Enclose Characters Tool
  • Insert a Circle Shape
  • Insert Enclosed Alphanumeric Symbols

We will show you step-by-step instructions for all the tools above.

Let us begin.


Method #1: Use the Oval Tool

Note: Word does not enable the Oval Tool by default. The best place to enable and place the Oval Tool is in the Quick Access Toolbar.

Step #1: Open the Word Document

Open the Word document where you want to place circles.

Step #2: Open the Word Options menu.

Click on the File tab in the top menu toolbar.

This opens the Files menu.

Click Options at the bottom of the Files menu.

Word Options menu will open.

Click on Quick Access Toolbar.

A dialog box for Customize the Quick Access Toolbar will open on the right-hand side.

Step #3: Customize the Quick Action Toolbar

Click on the down arrow below Choose commands from:

From the drop-down menu, select All Commands to change the command list below.

Search in the command list below All Commads and click on Oval.

Click on the Add button on the right-hand side of the command list.

Word will add the Oval tool in the Quick Action Toolbar list on the right.

Click on OK at the bottom of the dialog box to exit.

The Oval tool appears in the Quick Action Toolbar above the main toolbar.

Step #4: Use the Oval Tool

Position the cursor where you want the circle to appear.

Click on the Oval Tool in the Quick Action Toolbar.

The cursor will change to a cross.

Click on one corner and drag the cross cursor to the opposite corner to form a non-transparent circle.

Right-Click on the circle to open a menu.

Click on Format AutoShape/Picture.

This opens the Format AutoShape dialog box.

Click on the tab Colors and Lines.

Under Fill, drag the Transparency bar to the extreme right to 100%.

Click on OK at the bottom of the dialog box to exit.

Word makes the circle transparent.

Open the Format AutoShape/Picture dialog box again. Use it to change the weight, color, and style of the circle.


Method #2: Use the Enclose Characters Tool

Note: Word does not enable the Enclose Characters Tool by default. The best place to enable and place the Enclose Characters Tool is in the Quick Access Toolbar.

Step #1: Open the Word Document

Open the Word document where you want to place circles.

Step #2: Open the Word Options menu.

Click on the File tab in the top menu bar.

This opens the Files menu.

Click Options at the bottom of the Files menu.

Word Options menu will open.

Click on Quick Access Toolbar.

A dialog box to Customize the Quick Access Toolbar will open on the right-hand side.

Step #3: Customize the Quick Action Toolbar

Click on the down arrow below Choose commands from:

From the drop-down menu, select All Commands to change the command list below.

Search in the command list and click on Enclose Characters.

Click on the Add button on the right-hand side of the command list.

Word will add the Enclose Characters tool in the Quick Action Toolbar list on the right.

Click on OK at the bottom of the dialog box to exit.

The Enclose Characters tool appears in the Quick Action Toolbar above the main toolbar.

Step #4: Use the  Enclose Characters tool

Select the letter or number around which you want the circle to appear.

Click on the Enclose Characters tool in the Quick Action Toolbar.

The Enclose Characters dialog box will open.

Under Style, click on the Enlarge symbol icon in the dialog box.

Under Enclosure, select the shape of the enclosure you want.

Click on OK to exit.

Word places the selected shape to enclose the letter/number.


Method #3: Insert a Circle Shape

Step #1: Open the Word Document

Open the Word document where you want to place circles.

Step #2: Insert a Circle Shape

Click on the Insert tab on the top menu toolbar to change the ribbon.

In the section Illustrations, click on the Shapes icon.

This opens a drop-down dialog box for various shapes.

Click on the Oval icon in Basic Shapes.

The cursor will change to a cross.

Position the cross cursor at the top left-hand corner. Drag it to the bottom right-hand corner to form a non-transparent circle.

Under Shape Styles, click on Shape Fill.

This opens the Shape Styles dialog.

Click on No Fill.

The circle changes to a transparent one.

You can select the circle and use the handles to move it. You can also change its shape and size.


Method #4: Insert Enclosed Alphanumeric Symbols

Step #1: Open the Word Document

Open the Word document where you want to place circles.

Place the cursor where you want the circle to appear.

Step #2: Insert Enclosed Alphanumeric Symbols.

Click on the Insert tab in the top menu toolbar to change the ribbon.

In the section Symbols, click on the Symbol icon.

In the drop-down menu, click on the More Symbols icon.

This will open the Symbol dialog.

Under the Symbols tab, click on the downward arrow on the right of Font.

Under Font, select the Calibri font.

Under Subset, select Mathematical Operators.

A number of encircled symbols will appear.

Select the symbol you want.

Click on Insert and then on Close at the bottom of the dialog to exit.

Word places the selected symbol in the document.

Note: Word offers only numbers as enclosed alphanumeric symbols.


Conclusion

Follow our simple instructions to place a circle around a number or letter in your document. We have shown you four methods. Select the one that suits you best.

Written by Allen Wyatt (last updated February 5, 2021)
This tip applies to Word 2007, 2010, 2013, and 2016


When Des writes paper notes, she often puts squares around certain letters or numbers and circles around others. This is her own «code» that allows her to key in on information she needs to pay attention to. Des can relatively easily put squares around letters or numbers in a Word document (using borders), but she hasn’t found a way to add circles.

There are actually a few ways you can go about this. One way, of course, is to use the graphics capabilities built into Word to create a shape (a circle) that can be placed around any letters or numbers you desire. A quick way to do this is to customize the Quick Access Toolbar so it includes the Oval tool. (How you customize the QAT has been covered in other WordTips. The Oval tool is found by listing All Commands during the configuration process.)

Once the Oval tool is in place, click on it and you can then use the mouse pointer to draw the circle. Just hold down the Shift key as you click and drag, and you are guaranteed of a perfect circle. Of course, the circle is filled in with a color, but all you need to do is use the Fill tool (on the Format tab, visible immediately after drawing the circle) to choose No Fill. You can even right-click the circle and choose Set As Default. This assures that the next use of the Oval tool results in a no-fill shape. (You’ll still need to hold down Shift, however, to ensure you create a circle.)

The benefit to this approach is that you can make the circle any size you want and any color you want. The drawback is that it adds graphic shapes to your document—they can sometimes be difficult to position and they increase the size of your document file.

Another approach is to «enclose» your characters. This is achieved through a different command you can add to the Quick Access Toolbar. When configuring, again display All Commands and look for one named Enclose Character. When you’ve added it to the QAT, use it by selecting some text (either one or two characters, no more) and then clicking the tool. You then see the Enclose Character dialog box displayed. (See Figure 1.)

Figure 1. The Enclose Character dialog box.

Here you can select how you want the text affected (shrunk or enlarged) and what type of shape you want to use to enclose the text (circle, square, triangle, etc.). When you click on OK, the text is adjusted through the use of an EQ field. You’ll need to play with this approach a bit to determine if it works just the way you want.

A third way you can tackle this problem is to use a font that already has characters enclosed within circles. This is actually built into Word 2007, Word 2010, and Word 2013. Follow these steps:

  1. Position the insertion point where you want the circled text.
  2. Display the Insert tab of the ribbon.
  3. In the Symbols group, click the Symbol tool and then choose More Symbols. Word displays the Symbol dialog box.
  4. Using the Font drop-down list, choose Arial Unicode MS.
  5. Make sure that the From drop-down list is set to Unicode (Hex).
  6. Using the Subset drop-down list, choose Enclosed Alphanumerics. (You will need to scroll through the drop-down options a ways to find this.) (See Figure 2.)
  7. Figure 2. The Symbol dialog box.

  8. Select the symbol you want to use. (If you scroll down a bit you’ll also find circled uppercase letters and circled lowercase letters.)
  9. Click Insert.
  10. Close the Symbol dialog box.

The drawback to this approach is that it works only for the numbers 1 through 20 and for single letters (uppercase or lowercase). These steps also won’t work in Word 2016 because—for some inexplicable reason—Microsoft removed the Arial Unicode MS font, and it seems that none of the installed fonts has the Enclosed Alphanumerics subset included. You could, of course, search the Web for a downloadable font that would include circled characters.

WordTips is your source for cost-effective Microsoft Word training.
(Microsoft Word is the most popular word processing software in the world.)
This tip (13436) applies to Microsoft Word 2007, 2010, 2013, and 2016.

Author Bio

With more than 50 non-fiction books and numerous magazine articles to his credit, Allen Wyatt is an internationally recognized author. He is president of Sharon Parq Associates, a computer and publishing services company. Learn more about Allen…

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