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I have a custom multilevel list style in Microsoft Word 2010 which uses a mix of bullets and numbers.

Mixed list style

Whenever I try to change the bullet for single level, it ends up changing list items from every level to use the same bullet.

gif - list style changing

This issue only happens when using my custom multilevel list style. If I format my list with one of the default styles, I'm able to change individual levels without issue.

Why does changing the symbol for a single bullet level affect the entire multilevel list, and how can I prevent this from happening?

*I've uploaded a sample word document and screenshot of my multilevel list style for reference.

Stevoisiak
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  • Have you enabled some kind of "automatic update" when defining custom list style? I want to see custom list style settings you're mentioned with (press Ctrl-Shift-S, choose your custom style then click Modify). – Tetsuya Yamamoto Jul 06 '17 at 04:41
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    I can confirm this behavior. No need to enable any kind of "automatic update". Just create a new list style and set bullets for level 1, 2 and 3 - and the list behaves just like described in the question. Of course the bullets can be modified in the style itself, but somehow not from the pop-up menu. – endrju Jul 06 '17 at 08:24
  • @TetsuyaYamamoto Ctrl-Shift-S brings up the [Paragraph Style](https://i.stack.imgur.com/ICecS.png). I'm referring to a custom [Multilevel List](https://i.stack.imgur.com/PP58l.png), which is found under *[Home→Paragraph→Multilevel List](https://i.stack.imgur.com/lPaq6.png)* – Stevoisiak Jul 06 '17 at 13:18
  • You say "I try to change the bullet for single level...", I don't see this in the GIF. You simply right click on the page, try selecting the bullet point text first. – xvk3 Aug 24 '17 at 20:16
  • @WillV The gif may not have been the best demonstration. The issue also occurs when selecting an individual bullet, or when selecting through the bullet library. I've also confirmed this quirk is still present in Word 2013. – Stevoisiak Aug 24 '17 at 20:22
  • @StevenVascellaro Surely changing an individual level's style is unnecessary in a custom multilevel list because you would define each level's style upon creation? – xvk3 Aug 24 '17 at 20:57
  • @WillV The multi-level list style is defined as part of a blank template. The idea is that other users would then modify the template to fit their needs. – Stevoisiak Aug 24 '17 at 20:58

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I have found something that works for me. I'm using Word 2010. If I create a list like you have, place the cursor on the line I want to change, and then select the new bullet type, it will change all the lines in that "bullet group". However, if I instead highlight the entire line of the bullet that I want to change, it will only change that one line. This behavior is not intuitive to me, and I have to re-learn how to do this every time I come across it, but at least this seems to work.

Scot Dixon
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