Insert white space and break characters

Last updated on Sep 11, 2025

Learn how to insert whitespace and break characters to control text spacing and flow.

Place the insertion point to insert a white space character using the Type tool.

Select Type > Insert WhiteSpace Character.

Select any one of the following options from the sub-menu:

  • Em Space: Inserts space equally to the current type size.
  • En Space: Inserts space half the width of an em space.
  • Nonbreaking Space: Keeps words together on the same line.
  • Hair Space: Inserts one‑twenty-fourth the width of an em space.
  • Thin Space: Inserts one-eighth the width of an em space.
The Insert WhiteSpace Character submenu under the Type menu displays various options like Em Space and En Space. Nonbreaking Space and many more.
Insert a white space character from the Insert WhiteSpace Character submenu.

Insert a break character

You can insert a break character to start a new line without starting a new paragraph.

Place the insertion point where you want to insert a break character using the Type tool.

Right-click and select the Insert Break Character > Forced Line Break from the context menu.

View or delete break characters

Select Type > Show Hidden Characters.

Select the break character and press Delete to remove it.

Note

Non-printing characters include hard returns, soft returns, tabs, spaces, nonbreaking spaces, discretionary hyphens, and the end-of-text character. These are visible only when hidden characters are turned on.