⭐ Beginner Level

Word has other objects you can insert. Objects are elements in Word that are not part of the normal text flow. They usually come in containers that you can move around, resize and edit. Take a look at some types of objects:

Object	Example
Text boxes
Equations

Text boxes

Text boxes are frames that can contain text and other content separately from the main document page. You might want to use a text box for a side note, label, caption or just custom layout.

To add a text box go to Insert > Text box. Here you have a series of templated text boxes to choose from. The standard one is top left.

This place a text box on the page with some placeholder text which you can edit as needed. You can freely move, resize and rotate the text box as well. You can also insert images into a text box, it's like a minature page within the selection frame.

Draw text box

Draw your own text box to create a custom blank one. To do this go to Insert > Text box > Draw Text Box. Another way that's slightly quicker is via the Shapes menu; go to Insert > Shapes and click the icon with the rectangle with the 'A'.

Now your cursor will change to a cross hair and you can click and drag out a blank text box to the size you want.

Equations

Insert an equation via Insert > Equation. This places an equation field on the page for you to type into:

On the ribbon the Equation tab provides tools to build an equation.

Here's a simple demonstration:

Where to now?

Embedded files (OLE objects): Word lets you embedded other files into a Word document. These are known as OLE objects. You can essentially embed content from another file on the page or the file icon to be able to open it up. This is explored in the intermediate version of this article.
Drawing canvas: A drawing canvas is a container which groups together images, graphic visuals and even text boxes in a locked area. This is also explored in the intermediate version of this article.

Types of Objects in Word

Under the Insert tab on the ribbon you can add various objects into your document. Here's a quick gloss over what each of them are. Click the links to see how to insert them.

Object type	Definition
Text boxes	Text boxes sound like what they are, they are portable wrappable and formattable containers you can add text into as well as other content.
Equations	Equations are created within a field object inserted into the document.
Embedded files (OLE objects)	You can import other files directly onto the page in your document.
Drawing canvas	A container that groups text boxes, images and graphic elements together.
Grouped objects	Any combination of the above grouped together.

Inserting text boxes

Text boxes are exactly what they sound like. When you insert a text box onto the page you can enter text into it, change the size, position, style and format of the text box as needed. You can also insert images into them.

The quickest way to insert a text box is via Insert > Shapes - it's the top left option under the Basic shapes category. There are templated text boxes you can use too which are found under the Insert > Text boxes menu on the ribbon.

Text boxes are adjustable, formattable and wrappable; to see how to alter their properties, look at this article: Altering images and objects.

Inserting equations

Word offers some pre-made equations from the Equations drop down menu but you'll likely need to create one from scratch, so click the top half of the equations button, not the drop down.

An equations field will appear on the page and the Equations tab will now be visible on the ribbon with tools to create the equation. See more on equations here: Equations

Inserting embedded files (OLE objects)

You can embed existing files onto a page of a document. This acts as a way of attaching file content to your Word document either as a static standalone copy of that file or linked to the source file. There's a lot to unpack about these, to understand everything about them look at this article: Embedded files (OLE objects).

Inserting drawing canvases

A drawing canvas is a little-known container that groups images, graphic visuals and text boxes together in a locked area, which is useful if you need certain content to remain together in one space.

To insert a drawing canvas go to Shapes and select New Drawing Canvas at the very bottom of the drop down menu.

Once inserted the canvas itself behaves like a single object, it's formattable and wrappable, but while selected you can add images, other graphic visuals and text boxes inside it. See more on how to do this here:

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Objects