Alignment and text breaking

This may well be the first time you’ve had something designed. Of course, you’ve probably looked at the alignment in Word before. But how do you assess the alignment of a document? In this article, we discuss the key points you can check regarding the readability and alignment of your thesis.

The spacing between words depends largely on the text alignment. This spacing plays a major role in determining readability. In addition to alignment, font size and line height are also important. Read more about this in this article.

Aligned to the left

In practical terms, there are two options for text alignment: justified or left-aligned text. Below you can see the difference between the two options. When text links When text is justified, the spacing between words is optimal and always consistent. This creates a clear, easy-to-read layout, as you can see in the example below.

Filled-in text

However, a left-aligned At first glance, the text appears less neat. This is different with justified text, where the length of each line is fixed, ensuring that both the right and left margins of the text form a neat, straight line. Unfortunately, in justified text, the space between words depends on the number of words and the length of the words on a line. As a result, the space between words is variable, creating a more disorganised reading experience.

Cancel

However, if you would like a text that is fully filled out but still has a clear, easy-to-read layout, it is possible to hyphenate words. This ensures a more even distribution of space between words; however, the spacing is not quite as optimal as with left-justified text.

In conclusion

Please note whether you finds it distracting that the spacing between words varies. If this is the case, you might consider aligning the text to the left only or hyphenating words at the end of a line. This ensures more consistent spacing between words, resulting in a more restful reading experience.