# Typing parity with Word

> **Last reviewed:** 2026-10-11 · **Last updated:** 2026-10-12 · **Change:** minor (Correct TWo INitial CApitals, cAPS LOCK and table-cell capitals, #544; previously trivial: complex-script caret and Backspace, #604; Move Paragraph Up/Down, Promote/Demote, Go Back and Alt+X keys, #343) · **Target:** Microsoft Word (Microsoft 365) for Mac 16.113.4

What Word does when you type, observed black-box (same keystrokes typed into Word and
WordCraft, results read back paragraph by paragraph) and pinned by tests in
`crates/engine/src/tests_typing.rs`. When typing behaviour changes, change it here and in the
tests together. Line breaking and pagination are in [`layout-parity.md`](layout-parity.md); the
overall picture is in [`target-app-parity.md`](target-app-parity.md).

## Lists

| Keys | Word's result | Test |
|---|---|---|
| `* item` Enter Enter `text` | the second Enter ends the list; `text` is a **Normal** paragraph (no list indent left behind) | `enter_twice_after_a_list_item_ends_the_list`, `the_paragraph_after_a_list_is_normal_text` |
| … Enter ×3, ×4 | each further Enter adds a blank Normal paragraph (never swallowed) | `more_enters_after_a_list_make_blank_paragraphs` |
| Enter on an empty **nested** item | moves it up one level; only a top-level empty item leaves the list | `enter_on_an_empty_nested_item_moves_it_up_a_level_first` |
| `* ` Enter (nothing typed) | list cancelled, Normal paragraph | `enter_right_after_starting_a_list_cancels_it` |
| Tab / Shift+Tab at the start of an item | demote / promote | `shift_tab_and_tab_change_list_levels` |
| Backspace at the start of an item | 1st: number removed, indent kept; 2nd: Normal paragraph — **not** joined to the one above | `backspace_at_the_start_of_an_item_removes_the_number_then_the_indent` |
| Enter mid-item / at item start | splits the item / inserts an empty item above | `enter_in_the_middle_or_at_the_start_of_an_item` |
| Shift+Enter in an item | line break inside the same item | `shift_enter_stays_inside_the_list_item` |
| Paste: Keep Text Only `A`, empty line, `B` into an empty item | three paragraphs `A`, empty, `B`: pasted paragraph breaks are text, not Enter (they never end the list) | `plain_text_paste_keeps_an_empty_paragraph_in_a_list` |
| `* ` `- ` `1. ` `1) ` `a. ` `a) ` `A. ` `i. ` `I. ` + text | bullet, dash bullet, 1. 1) a. a) A. i. I. lists | `list_autoformat_triggers` |
| `> ` `-> ` `=> ` + text | bulleted list with an arrow bullet (➢ ➔ ⇨; Word takes them from a symbol font, we use the Unicode arrows) ¹ | `arrow_bullets` |
| `1. ` after other text | a new list restarting at 1 (never continues an earlier list) | `typing_1_dot_starts_numbering_again` |
| ⌘Z right after an AutoFormat | undoes only the AutoFormat (`* ` comes back as text) | `undo_right_after_autoformat_undoes_only_the_autoformat` |

## Undo

| Keys | Word's result | Test |
|---|---|---|
| type, select some of it, type over it | two undo steps: the first ⌘Z brings the selected text back (still selected), the second removes the typing. Uninterrupted typing stays one step | `typing_then_selecting_then_typing_are_two_undo_steps` |
| ⌘B with nothing selected, ⌘Z, type | the text isn't bold (Undo takes the waiting caret formatting back too); ⌘Y brings it back | `undoing_bold_at_the_caret_turns_bold_typing_off_again` |

## Track Changes

| Keys | Word's result | Test |
|---|---|---|
| Enter (tracking on) | the new paragraph mark is a tracked insertion; Reject All joins the paragraphs again, Accept All keeps them | `tracked_enter_and_backspace_track_the_paragraph_mark`, `tests::reject_all_removes_a_tracked_paragraph_break` |
| Paste of several paragraphs (tracking on) | every paragraph mark the paste adds is a tracked insertion; Reject All restores the one paragraph, Accept All keeps the pasted ones | `reject_all_takes_out_the_paragraph_breaks_a_tracked_paste_inserted` |
| Backspace at a paragraph start / Delete at a paragraph end (tracking on) | the paragraph mark is marked deleted (still shown); the caret moves before it (Backspace) or past it (Delete). Accept joins the paragraphs, Reject keeps them. A mark you inserted yourself is just removed | `tracked_enter_and_backspace_track_the_paragraph_mark`, `tests::tracked_backspace_and_delete_mark_a_paragraph_break_deleted` |

## Editing keys

Word's documented keyboard behaviour (Microsoft's shortcut list, feature names only); the
Windows/Linux keys are given first, macOS second.

| Keys | Word's result | Test |
|---|---|---|
| Alt+Shift+Up / Down (⌃⇧↑ / ⌃⇧↓) | the paragraphs the selection touches swap with the paragraph above / below, keeping style and list membership; the selection moves with them; one undo step. A selection ending at the start of a paragraph doesn't take it along. Refused at the top or bottom of the story or cell, next to a table and across a section break | `alt_shift_down_then_up_moves_a_paragraph_and_back_and_undoes` |
| Alt+Shift+Left / Right (⌃⇧← / ⌃⇧→) | Promote / Demote: a heading goes up or down one level (Heading 1 and Heading 9 are the ends); promoted body text becomes a heading at the level of the heading before it; a list item changes level like Shift+Tab / Tab | `alt_shift_left_and_right_promote_and_demote_headings_and_list_items` |
| Outline view: Alt+Shift+Up / Down, Left / Right | as above, but a collapsed heading takes what is hidden under it along: moving passes whole shown paragraphs with their hidden content; promote/demote shifts the hidden subheadings too | `outline_collapse_hides_descendants_and_expand_restores` |
| Outline view: Alt+Shift+Plus / Minus, Alt+Shift+1–9, Alt+Shift+A | Expand / Collapse the heading (one level at a time); Show Level 1–9; show all levels. The caret never stays in hidden text: it moves on to the next shown paragraph | `outline_show_level_filters_paragraphs` |
| Shift+F5 | Go Back: the caret cycles through the last four places edited, most recent first | `shift_f5_goes_back_through_the_last_edits` |
| Alt+X (no macOS default) | the hex code before the caret (up to six digits, `U+` optional) or the selected code becomes its character; otherwise the character before the caret becomes its code (`é` ↔ `00E9`); one undo step | `alt_x_toggles_between_a_character_and_its_code` |

## AutoCorrect and AutoFormat as you type

Applied when a word is finished by a space, punctuation **or Enter** (`enter_finishes_a_word_for_autocorrect`):

- First letter of a sentence (paragraph or list item start, after `. ! ?`) is capitalised; not
  after abbreviations (`e.g.`, `Dr.`, …) or initials (`J.`), and not for mixed-case words
  (`iPhone`) or single-letter labels (`a.`). `teh`→`the`, `i`→`I`, `(c)`→`©`, `(tm)`→`™`,
  `wait...`→`wait…`, smart quotes (`autocorrect_as_you_type`).
- Correct TWo INitial CApitals: a finished word of three or more letters with two capitals and
  the rest lowercase loses its second capital (`WOrd`→`Word`, `TEh`→`The`); not the exceptions
  (`IDs`, `CDs`, `PCs`, `TVs`, … plus the user's, `tools.autocorrect {"addInitialCapsException"}`)
  (`two_initial_capitals_are_corrected`).
- Correct accidental usage of cAPS LOCK: `wORD`→`Word` (three or more letters; not `iOS`,
  `mRNA`, …). Word also switches Caps Lock off; we only correct the word
  (`accidental_caps_lock_is_corrected`).
- Capitalize first letter of table cells: the first word typed in a cell is capitalised like a
  sentence start, under its own option (`first_letter_of_a_table_cell_is_capitalised`).
- Each fix is one undo step right after it, and each has its own switch (`twoInitialCaps`,
  `capsLock`, `capCells` on `tools.autocorrect`; on by default)
  (`capitalisation_fixes_undo_and_turn_off`).
- `1/2 1/4 3/4` → `½ ¼ ¾`; `1st 22nd 13th` get superscript suffixes (`ordinals_become_superscript`).
- `word -- word` → en dash, `word - word` → en dash, `word--word` → em dash (`dashes`).
- Web addresses become links; following text isn't linked (`web_addresses_become_links`).
- A hyperlink covers only its own text: typing at either end of it, or after Enter at its end,
  isn't linked; typing inside it is. Linking a whole paragraph doesn't link its mark, so the
  paragraphs Enter makes from it aren't links (#413; `a_link_covers_only_its_own_text`,
  `typing_at_either_end_of_a_link_is_not_linked`).
- Enter after `---` `===` `***` `___` `~~~` `###` → a bottom border on the paragraph above
  (single, double, dotted, thick, wave, triple) (`border_line_autoformat`). ⌘Z right after brings the
  characters back and removes the border; the Enter stays (one undo step) ¹
  (`undo_right_after_a_border_line_brings_the_characters_back`).
- `+---+------+` Enter (plus signs around runs of hyphens, the whole paragraph) → a one-row
  table across the text width, each column as wide as its share of the hyphens; the caret goes
  into the first cell. ⌘Z right after brings the characters back. More than 63 columns stay
  text ¹ (`plus_and_hyphen_line_becomes_a_table`).
- Smileys `:)` `:-)` `:(` `:-(` `:|` → ☺ ☹ 😐, also straight after a word (`ok:)` → `ok☺`) ¹
  (`smileys_are_replaced_inside_words_too`).

- Names of days are capitalised (`monday` → `Monday`). AutoCorrect Options (#412,
  `tools.autocorrect`, saved per user) switch each of these off: replacements, sentence and
  table-cell capitals, days, smart quotes, fractions, ordinals, dashes, links, bulleted and
  numbered lists, border lines; user entries are added, replaced or deleted (built-in ones too),
  and "don't capitalize after" exceptions extend the abbreviation list. A replacement of several
  words takes a sentence capital on its first (`autocorrect_options_change_what_typing_does`).

¹ From Word's documented AutoFormat and AutoCorrect options; not yet keystroke-compared with
Word.
## Editing options (File › Options › Advanced)

| Keys / setting | Result | Test |
|---|---|---|
| Typing over a selection | replaces it (Word's default); with "Typing replaces selected text" off, the text goes in front of the selection, which stays | `typing_over_a_selection_follows_the_replace_selection_option` |
| Overtype on, typing | each character replaces the one after the caret, never the paragraph mark or an object; Insert switches overtype only with the Insert-key option on (off by default, as in Word) | `overtype_replaces_the_characters_after_the_caret` |

## Text direction

- Typing Arabic, Hebrew or another right-to-left script as the first letters of a paragraph
  whose direction nothing sets (not the paragraph, its style or the document defaults) makes it
  a right-to-left paragraph, so the caret starts at the right margin. A paragraph that already
  has letters keeps its direction, and so do opened documents: a paragraph without `w:bidi` stays
  left-to-right whatever its text (`typing_rtl_letters_into_an_empty_paragraph_makes_it_rtl`).
  Word takes the direction from the keyboard language instead; not yet compared side by side.

## Layout

- No line break right after a slash (`and/or`, URLs) unless the word can't fit a line
  (`layout::tests::no_line_break_right_after_a_slash`).

## Complex scripts

- Myanmar, Khmer and the Indic scripts are typed in memory order (consonant, medials, then
  vowel signs such as ေ, which is drawn before its consonant); the caret steps over whole
  syllables (Myanmar vowel signs and stacked consonants never split off), Backspace removes one
  character (vowel sign, medial, stacked consonant), Delete the whole syllable — the platforms'
  standard behaviour, not yet compared against Word (#604,
  `myanmar_typing_steps_by_syllable_and_backspaces_by_sign`,
  `indic_and_khmer_backspace_removes_one_character`).

## Known gaps

- Word's body font Aptos isn't installed outside Office; our substitute (Carlito, else Helvetica
  Neue) is wider, so lines wrap earlier than in Word. Needs a metric-matched open substitute.
- Moving paragraphs with Track Changes on isn't recorded as a tracked move; whole table rows
  don't move yet (a selection across cells is refused). Go Back's places aren't mapped through
  later edits (they are clamped to the document).
- Not yet compared: keystroke-by-keystroke comparison of Correct TWo INitial CApitals, cAPS LOCK
  and table-cell capitals (implemented from Word's AutoCorrect options; Word's exception list
  not compared); the rows marked ¹ above.

## How to compare

- WordCraft: the headless `ui_shot` example (no window, no focus) with `UI_SHOT_FULL=1` prints
  the whole `document.inspect`; drive it with `ui.text` / `ui.key` lines so keys take the real
  input path.
- Word: the machine is shared. Prefer AppleScript that doesn't take focus (open, read
  paragraphs, export PDF). Keystroke runs steal focus and race the person at the keyboard: keep
  them short, read the document back to verify, and ask first. Screenshots of Word's window only,
  under `plan/word/screenshots/`.

## Revision history

| Date | Change | Summary |
|---|---|---|
| 2026-10-12 | minor | AutoCorrect: Correct TWo INitial CApitals, accidental cAPS LOCK, capitalize first letter of table cells (#544) |
| 2026-10-11 | minor | Text direction: right-to-left letters typed into an empty paragraph make it right-to-left; existing paragraphs keep theirs (#713) |
| 2026-10-11 | trivial | Grammar proofing (not AutoCorrect) no longer suggests capitalising a sentence after `...` or `…` (`proof::tests::ellipses_do_not_start_sentences`) |
| 2026-10-11 | minor | AutoFormat tables from `+---+`, arrow bullets, smileys inside words, undo after a border line (#546) |
| 2026-10-11 | trivial | Outline view keys: expand/collapse, Show Level, moving and promoting with collapsed content (#493) |
| 2026-10-11 | minor | Editing options: typing replaces selection, overtype and the Insert key (#485) |
| 2026-10-11 | minor | Pasted paragraph breaks: tracked under Track Changes (#417), kept in a list by Keep Text Only (#422) |
| 2026-10-11 | minor | Complex scripts: caret by syllable, Backspace by character (#604) |
| 2026-10-11 | minor | Undo rows: a selection ends the typing group (#419); Undo of Bold at the caret restores unbolded typing (#424) |
| 2026-10-11 | minor | Names of days capitalised; AutoCorrect Options (user entries, deleted built-ins, exceptions, every AutoCorrect/AutoFormat switch) change typing (#412) |
| 2026-10-11 | minor | Editing keys: Move Paragraph Up/Down, Promote/Demote, Go Back (Shift+F5), Alt+X (#343) |
| 2026-10-11 | minor | Hyperlinks: text typed at either end of a link or after Enter stays outside it (#413) |
| 2026-10-10 | trivial | Status line, revision history and cross-links added (progress-docs standard) |
| 2026-10-10 | minor | Track Changes rows: tracked Enter, Backspace and Delete on paragraph marks (#244) |
| 2026-10-10 | major | First version: lists, AutoCorrect and AutoFormat as you type, observed against Word (#204) |