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Zotero

Word Processor Integration

Installing the Zotero Word plugin adds a Zotero tab to Microsoft Word.

Zotero bar in word

See Troubleshooting Guide if Zotero Word plugin does not appear after Zotero installation.

Document Preferences

Document Preferences window

The “Document Preferences” window lets you set the following document-specific preferences:

  • The citation style.
  • The language to use to format citations and bibliography.
  • For note-based styles (e.g., “Chicago Manual of Style (Note)”), whether citations are inserted in footnotes or endnotes.

Citing

You can begin citing with Zotero by clicking the “Add/Edit Citation” (Citing button) button. Pressing the button brings up the citation dialog. The citation dialog is used to select items from your Zotero library, and create a citation.

Start typing part of a title, the last names of one or more authors, and/or a year in the dialog box. Matching items will instantly appear below the dialog box. Items you have already cited in the document will be shown at the top of the list under “Cited”.

Citation dialogue box

Select an item by clicking on it or by pressing Enter/Return when it is highlighted. The item will appear in the dialog box in a shaded bubble. Press Enter/Return again to insert the citation and close the Add Citation box.

Bibliography

Clicking the “Add/Edit Bibliography” (Bibliography button) button inserts a bibliography at the cursor location.

Note: You can edit which items appear in the bibliography by clicking the “Add/Edit Bibliography” button again, which will open the bibliography editor. Manual edits made to the bibliography in Word will be overwritten the next time Zotero refreshes the document. (See "Unlink Citations" below).

"Unlink Citations"

If you need to edit items in your bibliography, it is best to do this as a final step before submitting the document. First, save a backup copy of the document. Then, click the “Unlink Citations” button (Unlink citations button) to disconnect your document from Zotero and convert all citations and the bibliography to regular text. Finally, make your adjustments to the bibliography text.