How to Use Researcher in Word for Essays
Microsoft aims to streamline your research process with the Researcher tool in Word. This feature allows you to gather sources for essays, research papers, and other documents without leaving your Word document.
What Can You Do with Researcher?
Powered by Bing, Researcher provides a search box to find relevant information on people, events, places, and concepts. The search results include a variety of sources such as books, journals, websites, and images.
When you select a source, you can view key details such as an overview, historical context, location, images, and more—without ever leaving Word.
Additionally, Researcher enables you to start an outline for your paper and add or cite relevant text directly. Simply click on a topic or section, and it will be inserted into your document.
In this guide, we’ll show you how to save time on research and accelerate the creation of your paper using the Researcher tool in Microsoft Word.
How to Use the Researcher Tool in Microsoft Word
To access the Researcher tool, open the References tab in your Word document. Click on Researcher in the Research section of the ribbon.
Once the Researcher pane opens on the right, simply type a term into the search box to begin.
Review Relevant Topics and Top Sources
Your search results will show Relevant Topics at the top, followed by Top Sources.
Relevant Topics
You may find just a few relevant topics for your search. To explore more, click More Topics. When you click a Relevant Topic, you’ll see a brief overview. For more detailed information, click Read More. Additional sections with relevant details will follow, helping you begin an outline. If images are available, you can click See All Images to view a gallery and add them to your document.
Top Sources
In the Top Sources section, you’ll find books, journals, and websites. If you selected a Relevant Topic first, you can filter these sources by subtopic. Some sources will open directly in Word, but others may open in your browser. Click the link to access the source online.
Add Information to Your Document
Researcher allows you to easily add headings, text, and images to your document.
Add Headings
Click the + icon in the top right of a section to add it as a collapsible heading for your document outline. This adds only the heading, not the text.
Add Text
To add text, highlight a snippet from the source. A box will appear with options to Add and Cite or simply Add. If you choose Add and Cite, the text will be inserted into your document, with the source automatically cited at the end.
Add Images
To add images, click the + icon in the corner of any image. The image will be added to your document, with its source cited below it.
By using Researcher in Word, you can streamline the research process and effortlessly add content to your paper.