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How to add diagonal line to a table cell in Word?

Author Amanda Li Last modified

Adding a diagonal line to a table cell in Word can enhance the organization and clarity of your tables, particularly when you need to label both rows and columns within the same cell.

This tutorial explores several methods for easily adding a diagonal split in the top-left cell in Word, helping you improve your document layout and presentation.

Table with a diagonal split in the top-left cell, containing both row and column headers

Manually insert diagonal line to a table cell by adjusting the table borders

You can insert a diagonal line in a table header by adjusting the table borders and shading. Follow these steps:

  1. Click in the cell where you want to insert a diagonal line.
  2. On the "Home" tab, in the "Paragraph" group, click the "Borders" dropdown and select the "Diagonal Down Border" option.
    Diagonal Down Border option on the ribbon

Manually insert diagonal line to a table cell by drawing a line shape

If you want to insert different styles of diagonal lines into the table, follow these steps:

  1. Click the "Insert" tab, then click "Shapes" in the "Illustrations" group, and select the Line shape Line option from the Lines group.
    Line shape on the ribbon
  2. Draw the diagonal line by dragging the cursor. You can customize it freely.
    Two lines are drawn in the first cell

Quickly insert a diagonal line and labels into a table cell

Kutools for Word provides a quick and efficient way to insert a diagonal line and add labels in the header cell, allowing you to clearly represent both row and column data in a Word table.

Kutools for Word, equipped with AI 🤖, offers over 100 handy features to simplify your tasks.
  1. Select the table whose first cell you want to format with a diagonal line and labels.
  2. Click "Kutools Plus" > "Table" > "Diagonal Header".
    Diagonal Header option on the Kutools Plus tab on the ribbon
  3. After clicking "Diagonal Header", the Diagonal Table Header dialog box will appear. In this dialog, you can:
    • Select a "Diagonal Table Header Style".
    • Set the row and column labels.
    • Adjust the font size if needed.
      Diagonal Table Header dialog box
  4. Click "OK" to apply. The table will update with the diagonal header as shown:
    Table with a diagonal split in the top-left cell, containing both row and column headers
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Demo: Insert Diagonal Header in Word Table

 
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