Copyright

This document is Copyright © 2023 by the LibreOffice Documentation Team. Contributors are
listed below. You may distribute it and/or modify it under the terms of either the GNU General
Public License (https://www.gnu.org/licenses/gpl.html), version 3 or later, or the Creative
Commons Attribution License (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), version 4.0 or later.
All trademarks within this guide belong to their legitimate owners.

Contributors
To this edition
Vítor Ferreira Olivier Hallot
To previous editions
Rafael Lima Olivier Hallot Jean Hollis Weber
Roman Kuznetsov Dave Barton Regina Henschel
Peter Schofield Hazel Russman Laurent Balland-Poirier
Jean Hollis Weber Daniel Carrera Agnes Belzunce
T. J. Frazier Peter Kupfer Ian Laurenson
Janet M. Swisher Michele Zarri Florian Reisinger
Christian Kühl Jochen Schiffers Frédéric Parrenin
Gisbert Friege (Dmaths) Bernard Siaud
LibreOffice 7.x Guide Series cover design by Rizal Mutaqin.

Feedback
Please direct any comments or suggestions about this document to the Documentation Team’s
forum at https://community.documentfoundation.org/c/documentation/loguides/ (registration is
required) or send an email to: [email protected].

Note
Everything you send to a mailing list, including your email address and any other
personal information that is written in the message, is publicly archived and cannot
be deleted.

Publication date and software version

Published June 2023. Based on LibreOffice 7.3 Community.
Other versions of LibreOffice may differ in appearance and functionality.

Documentation for LibreOffice is available at https://documentation.libreoffice.org/en/

Contents
Copyright.....................................................................................................................................2
Preface.............................................................................................................................. 5
Who is this book for?..................................................................................................................6
Where to get more help..............................................................................................................6
What you see may be different...................................................................................................8
Using LibreOffice on macOS......................................................................................................8
What is new in LibreOffice Math 7.5 Community?......................................................................9
Chapter 1, Creating and Editing Formulas..................................................................10
Introduction................................................................................................................................11
Getting started...........................................................................................................................11
Creating formulas......................................................................................................................13
Editing formulas........................................................................................................................18
Formula layout..........................................................................................................................18
Changing formula appearance..................................................................................................24
Formula library..........................................................................................................................32
Chapter 2, Formulas in Writer.......................................................................................34
Introduction...............................................................................................................................35
Automatic formula numbering...................................................................................................35
Anchoring formulas...................................................................................................................36
Vertical alignment......................................................................................................................37
Object spacing..........................................................................................................................38
Text mode.................................................................................................................................39
Background and borders...........................................................................................................39
Quick insertion of formulas.......................................................................................................41
Chapter 3, Formulas in Calc, Draw, and Impress........................................................42
Introduction...............................................................................................................................43
Anchoring formulas...................................................................................................................43
Formula object properties.........................................................................................................43
Formulas in charts....................................................................................................................44
Chemical formulas....................................................................................................................45
Chapter 4, Customization..............................................................................................46
Introduction...............................................................................................................................47
Floating dialogs.........................................................................................................................47
Adding keyboard shortcuts.......................................................................................................47
Catalog customization...............................................................................................................50
Formula spacing.......................................................................................................................53
Scaling of code in the Formula Editor input window.................................................................53
Extensions................................................................................................................................54
Chapter 5, Exporting and Importing.............................................................................55
MathML format..........................................................................................................................56
Microsoft file formats.................................................................................................................56

LibreOffice 7.5 Math Guide | 3

Appendix A, Commands Reference.............................................................................57
Introduction...............................................................................................................................58
Unary/binary operator commands.............................................................................................58
Relation commands..................................................................................................................59
Set operation commands..........................................................................................................60
Functions..................................................................................................................................61
Operators..................................................................................................................................62
Attributes...................................................................................................................................64
Brackets....................................................................................................................................66
Formats.....................................................................................................................................68
Others.......................................................................................................................................69
Greek characters......................................................................................................................70
Special characters....................................................................................................................72
Reserved words........................................................................................................................72

4 | LibreOffice 7.5 Math Guide

 Math Guide 7.3

Preface
Who is this book for?
LibreOffice Math is a formula (equation) editor that is an integral part of LibreOffice. Anyone who
wants to learn how to insert formulas and equations using Math will find this guide valuable.
In LibreOffice, formulas can be inserted as objects into Writer, Impress, Draw, and Calc
documents. Regardless of the document type, formula objects are edited using LibreOffice Math.
If you want an introduction to all of the LibreOffice components, you might like to read the Getting
Started Guide first.

Note
LibreOffice Math is not capable of evaluating mathematical equations or performing
calculations. For that purpose, you should use LibreOffice Calc; see the Calc Guide.

Where to get more help

This guide, the other LibreOffice user guides, the Help system, and user support systems
assume that you are familiar with your computer and its operating system’s basic functions such
as starting a program, opening and saving files.

Help system
LibreOffice comes with an extensive online Help system. This is your first line of support.
Windows and Linux users can choose to download and install the Help for use when not
connected to the Internet; the offline Help is installed with the program on macOS.
To display the Help system, press F1 or go to Help > LibreOffice Help on the Menu bar. If you
do not have the offline help installed on your computer and you are connected to the Internet,
your default browser will open the online Help pages on the LibreOffice website.
The Help menu also includes links to other LibreOffice information and support facilities. The
options marked by a ‡ sign in the list below are only accessible if your computer is connected to
the Internet.
• What's This? For quick tips when a toolbar is visible, place the mouse pointer over any of
the icons to see a small box (“tooltip”) with a brief explanation of the icon’s function. For a
more detailed explanation, select Help > What's This? and hold the pointer over the
icon. In addition, you can choose whether to activate Extended Tips using Tools >
Options > LibreOffice > General.
• User Guides ‡ Opens your default browser at the Documentation page of the LibreOffice
website, https://documentation.libreoffice.org/en/english-documentation/. There you will
find copies of user guides and other useful information.
• Show Tip of the Day Opens a small window with a random tip on how to use LibreOffice.
• Search Commands In Writer, Calc, Impress, and Draw (but not Base or Math), opens a
window where you can type a few letters or the name of a Menu bar command, to quickly
find where the command is located. Clicking on a command in the resulting list may open
a relevant dialog or have other effects.
• Get Help Online ‡ Opens your default browser at the Ask LibreOffice forum of questions
and answers from the LibreOffice community, https://ask.libreoffice.org/en/questions/.
• Send Feedback ‡ Opens your default browser at the Feedback page of the LibreOffice
website, https://www.libreoffice.org/get-help/feedback/. From there you can report bugs,
suggest new features and communicate with others in the LibreOffice community.

6 | LibreOffice 7.5 Math Guide

 • Restart in Safe Mode Opens a dialog where you can restart LibreOffice and reset the
software to its default settings.
• Get Involved ‡ Opens your default browser at the Get Involved page of the LibreOffice
website, https://www.libreoffice.org/community/get-involved/. There you can choose a
topic of interest to help improve the program.
• Donate to LibreOffice ‡ Opens your default browser at the Donation page of the
LibreOffice website, https://donate.libreoffice.org/.
• License Information Outlines the licenses under which LibreOffice is made available.
• Check for Updates ‡ Opens a dialog and checks the LibreOffice website for updates to
your version of the software.
• About LibreOffice Opens a dialog and displays information about the version of
LibreOffice and the operating system you are using. This information will often be
requested if you ask the community for help or assistance with the software. A button is
provided to enable you to copy this information to the clipboard so that you can
subsequently paste it into a forum post, an email, or a bug report. (On macOS, this item is
under LibreOffice on the Menu bar.)

Other free online support

The LibreOffice community not only develops software, but provides free, volunteer-based
support. In addition to the Help menu links above, other online community support options are
available; see Table 1 and this web page: https://www.libreoffice.org/get-help/.
Table 1: Free support for LibreOffice users
Free LibreOffice support
Answers to frequently asked questions
FAQs
https://wiki.documentfoundation.org/Faq
Free community support is provided by a network of experienced
Mailing lists users
https://www.libreoffice.org/get-help/mailing-lists/
As in the mailing lists above, but through forum
Forum
https://community.documentfoundation.org/
Free community assistance is provided in a Question & Answer
format. Search similar topics or ask a new question in
Questions &
https://ask.libreoffice.org/en/questions
Answers and
Knowledge Base The service is available in several other languages; just replace
/en/ with de, es, fr, ja, ko, nl, pt, tr, and many others in the web
address above.
The LibreOffice website in various languages
https://www.libreoffice.org/community/nlc/
Native language Mailing lists for native languages
support https://wiki.documentfoundation.org/Local_Mailing_Lists
Information about social networking
https://wiki.documentfoundation.org/Website/Web_Sites_services
Information about available accessibility options
Accessibility options
https://www.libreoffice.org/get-help/accessibility/

Preface | 7
Paid support and training
You can also pay for support through service contracts from a vendor or consulting firm
specializing in LibreOffice. For information about certified professional support, see The
Document Foundation’s website: https://www.documentfoundation.org/gethelp/support/.
For schools, educational and research institutions, and large organizations, see
https://www.libreoffice.org/download/libreoffice-in-business/.

What you see may be different

LibreOffice runs on Windows, Linux, and macOS operating systems, each of which has several
versions and can be customized by users (fonts, colors, themes, window managers).

Illustrations
The illustrations in this guide were taken from the Windows 10 operating system. Therefore,
some illustrations will not look exactly like what you see on your computer display.
Also, some of the dialogs may be different because of the settings selected in LibreOffice. In
some cases (mainly Open, Save, and Print dialogs), you can choose to use dialogs from your
computer’s operating system or dialogs provided by LibreOffice. To change which dialogs are
used, go to Tools > Options > LibreOffice > General (on Windows and Linux) or LibreOffice >
Preferences > General (on macOS) and select or deselect the option Use LibreOffice dialogs.

Icons
The LibreOffice community has created icons for several icon sets: Breeze, Colibre, Elementary,
Karasa Jaga, Sifr, and Sakapura; some are also available in a dark version. As a user, you can
select your own preferred set. The icons in this guide have been taken from a LibreOffice
installation that has been set to display the default set of icons. The icons you see for some of
the many tools available in LibreOffice may differ from the ones used in this guide.
To change the icon set used, go to Tools > Options > LibreOffice > View. In the Icon style
section, choose from the drop-down list.

Notes
Some Linux distributions include LibreOffice as part of the installation and may not
include all the icon sets mentioned above. You should be able to download other
icon sets from the software repository for your Linux distribution if you wish to use
them.
The Galaxy, Oxygen, and Tango icon sets are no longer included as part of the
standard installation package. You can download and install them as extensions from
https://extensions.libreoffice.org/en/extensions/.

Using LibreOffice on macOS

Some keystrokes and menu items are different on macOS from those used in Windows and
Linux. The table below gives some common substitutions for the instructions in this book. For a
more detailed list, see the application Help.

8 | LibreOffice 7.5 Math Guide

 Windows or Linux macOS equivalent Effect
Tools > Options
LibreOffice > Preferences Access setup options
menu selection
Control+click or right-click
Right-click Open a context menu
depending on computer setup
Ctrl (Control) ⌘ (Command) Used with other keys
Open the Styles deck in the
F11 ⌘+T
Sidebar

What is new in LibreOffice Math 7.5 Community?

LibreOffice Math 7.5 Community includes many improvements not visible in the user interface,
including support for MathML custom entities and html color support.
This user guide has been updated from Math Guide 7.2 It covers some of the new features in
LibreOffice 7.3, 7.4 and 7.5 that are visible in the user interface, including:
• Elements pane from left side of Math's window was moved to Sidebar.

Preface | 9
 Math Guide 7.3

Chapter 1,
Creating and Editing Formulas
Introduction
Math is a formula editor included with LibreOffice that you can use to create or edit formulas
(equations) in a symbolic form, within LibreOffice documents or as stand-alone objects. Example
formulas are shown below:
df (x)
=ln (x)+tan −1 (x 2) or NH3 +H2 O ⇌ NH+4 +OH −
dx
The Formula Editor in Math uses a markup language to represent formulas. This markup
language is designed to be easily read wherever possible. For example, a over b using
a
markup language produces the fraction when used in a formula.
b

Getting started
Using the Formula Editor, you can create a formula as a separate file for a formula library or
insert formulas directly into a document using LibreOffice Writer, Calc, Impress, or Draw.

Formulas as separate documents or files

To create a formula as a separate document or file, use one of the following methods to open an
empty formula document in LibreOffice Math (Figure 1).
• On the Menu bar, go to File > New > Formula.
• On the Standard toolbar, click the triangle to the right of the New icon and select
Formula.
• From the Start Center, click Math Formula.
• From within LibreOffice Math, use the keyboard shortcut Ctrl+N.
• You can also launch Math from the command line using libreoffice --math

Figure 1: An empty formula document in Math

Chapter 1, Creating and Editing Formulas | 11

As the markup language in the Formula Editor is entered, the formula will appear in the Preview
window during and after input of the markup language. The Elements panel on the sidebar to the
right of the Preview window may also appear, if it has been selected in View on the Menu bar, as
shown in Figure 4.
For more information on creating formulas, see “Creating formulas” on page 13.

Figure 2: Enabling the Elements panel

Formulas in LibreOffice documents

To insert a formula into a LibreOffice document, open the document in Writer, Calc, Draw, or
Impress. The LibreOffice component you are using affects how you position the cursor to insert
the formula.
• In Writer, click in the paragraph where you want to insert the formula.
• In Calc, click in the spreadsheet cell where you want to insert the formula.
• In Draw and Impress, the formula is inserted into the center of the drawing or slide.
Then, go to Insert > Object > Formula Object on the Menu bar to open the Formula Editor.
Alternatively, go to Insert > Object > OLE Object on the Menu bar to open the Insert OLE
Object dialog, then select Create new, choose the Object Type “LibreOffice 7.3 Formula” and
then click OK to open the Formula Editor.
The Elements panel to the right of the Preview window , if Elements has been selected in View
on the Menu bar. For more information on creating formulas, see “Creating formulas” on page 13.
Figure 3 shows an example Writer document with the formula box selected ready for a formula to
be entered or edited.
When you have completed entering the markup language for the formula, close the Formula
Editor by pressing the Esc key or by clicking an area outside the formula in the document.
Double-click on the formula object in the document to open the Formula Editor again so that you
can edit the formula.
Formulas are inserted as OLE objects into documents. You can change how the object is placed
within the document, as with any OLE object. For more information on OLE objects, see Chapter
2, Formulas in Writer, Chapter 3, Formulas in Calc, Draw, and Impress, and the user guides for
Writer, Calc, Draw, and Impress.

12 | LibreOffice 7.5 Math Guide

 Figure 3: Formula in a Writer document

If you frequently insert formulas into documents, it is recommended to add the Formula button to
the Standard toolbar or create a keyboard shortcut. See “Adding keyboard shortcuts” on page 47
for more information.

Creating formulas
You can create a formula using one of the following methods:
• In the Elements panel, select a category from the drop-down list, then a symbol.
• Right-click in the Formula Editor and select a category, then select a symbol in the
context menu.
• Enter markup language directly in the Formula Editor.

Note
Using the Elements panel or the context menus to create a formula provides a
convenient way to learn the markup language used by LibreOffice Math.

Tip
When using the Elements panel, it is recommended to have Extended Tips selected
in the LibreOffice Options. This will help you identify the categories and symbols you
can use in the formula. Go to Tools > Options > LibreOffice > General on the
Menu bar and select Extended Tips in the Help section.

Chapter 1, Creating and Editing Formulas | 13

Elements Panel
The Elements panel (Figure 4) is a visual tool to help you create and edit formulas. It organizes
mathematical symbols and operators using Categories in a drop-down list. The steps below
describe how to enable the Elements panel and navigate its categories and symbols.
1) Go to View > Elements on the Menu bar to open the Elements panel.
2) Select the category you want to use in your formula from the drop-down list at the top of
the Elements panel.
3) Select the symbol you want to use in your formula in the Elements panel. The symbols
that are available change according to the selected category.
4) After choosing one of the symbols in the Elements panel, the Formula Editor will be
updated with the Markup notation of the selected symbol.

Figure 4: Elements panel as a

floating dialog

Note
The Elements panel can either be a floating dialog, as shown in Figure 4, or
positioned to the left of the Formula Editor, as shown in Figure 1 and Figure 3.

Tip
The Elements panel includes an Examples category which provides example
formulas to use as a starting point for your formula or equation.

Context menu
The Formula Editor also provides a context menu to access categories and symbols when
creating a formula. Right-click in the Formula Editor to open the context menu. Select a category
and then select the markup example that you want to use in the sub-context menu. An example
is shown in Figure 5.

Note
The Elements panel and the context menu contain only the most common
commands that are used in formulas. To insert other symbols and commands not
listed in the Elements panel and context menu, you have to enter them manually
using the markup language. For a complete list of commands and symbols available
in Math, see Appendix A, Commands Reference.

14 | LibreOffice 7.5 Math Guide

 Figure 5: Context menu in Formula Editor

Markup language
Markup language is entered directly into the Formula Editor. For example, typing 5 times 4
into the Formula Editor creates the simple formula 5×4 . If you are experienced in using markup
language, it can be the quickest way to enter a formula. Table 2 shows some examples of using
markup language to enter commands. For a full list of commands that can be used in the
Formula Editor, see Appendix A, Commands Reference.
Table 2: Example commands using markup language
Display Command Display Command
a=b a = b √a sqrt {a}
2
a a^2 an a_n

∫ f ( x)dx int f(x) dx ∑ an sum a_n

a≤b a <= b ∞ infinity
a×b a times b x⋅y x cdot y

Greek characters
Using markup language
Greek characters are commonly used in formulas, but they cannot be entered into a formula
using the Elements panel or the context menu. Use the English names of Greek characters in
markup language when entering Greek characters into a formula. See Appendix A, Commands
Reference for a list of characters that can be entered using markup language.

Chapter 1, Creating and Editing Formulas | 15

 • For a lowercase Greek character, type a percentage % sign, then type the character
name in lowercase using the English name. For example, typing %lambda creates the
Greek character λ .
• For an UPPERCASE Greek character, type a percentage % sign, then type the character
name in UPPERCASE using the English name. For example, typing %LAMBDA creates
the Greek character Λ.
• For an italic Greek character, type a percentage % sign followed by the i character, then
the English name of the Greek character in lower or UPPER case. For example, typing
%iTHETA creates the italic Greek character Θ .

Symbols dialog
Greek characters can also be entered into a formula using the Symbols dialog.
1) Make sure your cursor is in the correct position in the Formula Editor.
2) Go to Tools > Symbols on the Menu bar, or click the Symbols icon in the Tools toolbar,
to open the Symbols dialog (Figure 6)
3) Select Greek in the Symbol set drop-down list. For italic characters, select iGreek in the
drop-down list.
4) Double-click the Greek character you want to insert, or select it and click Insert. When
selected, the name of the character is shown below the symbol list.
5) Click Close when you have finished entering Greek characters into your formula.

Figure 6: Symbols dialog

Formula examples
Example 1
The simple formula 5×4 can be created using LibreOffice Math as follows:
1) Make sure your cursor is flashing in the Formula Editor, then select the category
Unary/Binary Operators and symbol Multiplication using one of the following methods:
– In the Elements panel, select Unary/Binary Operators from the drop-down list and
then select the Multiplication icon .

16 | LibreOffice 7.5 Math Guide

 – Right-click in the Formula Editor and select Unary/Binary Operators > a times b
from the context menu.
– Using markup language, type 5 times 4 in the Formula Editor.
The first two methods place the formula text <?> times <?> in the Formula Editor and
the symbol appears in the document. For the third method, using markup
language in the Formula Editor places the formula 5×4 directly into the document and
there is no need to carry out the following steps.
2) Select the first placeholder <?> before the word times in the Formula Editor and replace
it with the character 5. The formula in your document updates automatically.
3) Select the second placeholder <?> after the word times in the Formula Editor and
replace it with the character 4. The formula in your document updates automatically.

Tip
To move forward from one placeholder to the next placeholder in a formula, press
the F4 key. To move backward from one placeholder to the previous placeholder in a
formula, use the key combination Shift+F4.

Note
If necessary, you can prevent a formula in a document from updating automatically.
Go to View on the Menu bar and deselect AutoUpdate Display. To then manually
update a formula, press the F9 key or select View > Update on the Menu bar.

Example 2
You want to enter the formula π ≃ 3.14159 , where the value of pi is rounded to 5 decimal
places. You know the name of the Greek character (pi), but do not know the markup associated
with the Is Similar Or Equal symbol ≃ .
1) Make sure your cursor is flashing in the Formula Editor.
2) Enter %pi in the Formula Editor to enter the Greek character for pi (π).
3) Select the category Relations and symbol Is Similar Or Equal using one of the following
methods:
– In the Elements panel, select Relations in the drop-down list and then select the Is
Similar Or Equal icon .
– Right-click in the Formula Editor and select Relations > a simeq b in the context
menu.
4) Delete the first placeholder <?> before the word simeq in the Formula Editor.
5) Select the second placeholder <?> after the word simeq in the Formula Editor and
replace it with the characters 3.14159. The formula π ≃ 3.14159 now appears in
your document.

Editing formulas
How you edit a formula and switch into formula editing mode depends on whether the formula is
in Math or another LibreOffice component.
1) In Math, double-click on a formula element in the formula that appears in the Preview
window to select the formula element in the Formula Editor, or directly select a formula
element in the Formula Editor.

Chapter 1, Creating and Editing Formulas | 17

 In Writer, Calc, Impress, or Draw, double-click on the formula, or right-click on the formula
and select Edit in the context menu, to open the Formula Editor and enter editing mode.
The cursor is positioned at the start of the formula in the Formula Editor.

Note
If you cannot select a formula element using the cursor, click on the Formula Cursor
icon in the Tools toolbar to activate the formula cursor.

2) Select the formula element you want to change using one of the following methods:
– Click on the formula element in the Preview window, positioning the cursor at the
beginning of the formula element in the Formula Editor, then select the formula
element in the Formula Editor.
– Double-click on the formula element in the Preview window to select the formula
element in the Formula Editor.
– Position the cursor in the Formula Editor at the formula element you want to edit, then
select that formula element.
– Double-click directly on the formula element in the Formula Editor to select it.
3) Make your changes to the formula element you have selected.
4) Go to View > Update on the Menu bar, or press the F9 key, or click on the Update icon
on the Tools toolbar to update the formula in the Preview window or your document.
5) In Math, save your changes to the formula after editing.
In Writer, Calc, Impress, or Draw, click anywhere in the document away from the formula
to leave editing mode, then save the document to save your changes to the formula.

Formula layout
This section provides some advice on how to lay out complex formulas in Math or in your
LibreOffice document.

Using braces
LibreOffice Math knows nothing about order of operation within a formula. You need to use
braces (curly brackets) to define the order of operations. The following examples show how
braces can be used in a formula.
Example 1
2
2 over x + 1 gives the result +1
x
Math has recognized that the 2 before and the x after the over command as belonging to
the fraction, and has represented them accordingly. If you want x +1 rather than x to
be the denominator, you must bracket them together using braces so that both will be
placed there.
2
Inserting braces into 2 over {x + 1} gives the result where x +1 is now the
x+1
denominator.
Example 2
−1
– 1 over 2 gives the result
2

18 | LibreOffice 7.5 Math Guide

 Math has recognized the minus sign as a prefix for the 1 and has therefore placed it in the
numerator of the fraction. If you wish to show that the whole fraction is negative, with the
minus sign in front of the fraction, you must put the fraction in braces to signify to Math that
the characters belong together.
1
Adding braces into the markup language – {1 over 2} gives the result – and the
2
whole fraction is now negative.
Example 3
When braces are used in markup language, they define the layout of the formula and are
not displayed or printed. If you want to use braces within a formula, use the commands
lbrace and rbrace within the markup language.
x
x over {–x + 1} gives the result
– x+1
Replace the braces using the commands lbrace and rbrace in the markup language.
x
Write x over lbrace –x + 1 rbrace and the result is
{– x +1}

Brackets (parentheses) and matrices

If you want to use a matrix in a formula, you have to use the matrix command. Below is a
simple example of a 2 x 2 matrix.

matrix { a # b ## c # d } a b
c d
In matrices, rows are separated by two hashes (##) and entries within each row are separated by
one hash (#).

Normally, when you use brackets within a matrix, the brackets do not scale as the matrix
increases in size. The example below shows an a formula where the parentheses do not scale to
the size of the resulting matrix.

a b
( matrix { a # b ## c # d } ) ( )
c d
To overcome this problem, Math provides scalable brackets that grow in size to match the size of
the matrix. The commands left( and right) have to be used to create scalable brackets
around a matrix. The following example shows how to create a matrix with scalable parentheses.

left( matrix { a # b ## c # d } right) (ac bd )

Scalable brackets can also be used with any element of a formula, such as fraction, square root,
and so on.
To create a matrix where some values are empty, you can use the grave accent (`) so that Math
will put a small space in that position, as shown in the example below:

left( matrix { 1 # 2 # 3 ##
4 # ` # 6 } right) ( 14 2 3
6 )

Chapter 1, Creating and Editing Formulas | 19

 Tip
Use the commands left[ and right] to obtain square brackets. A list of all
brackets available within Math can be found in Appendix A, Commands Reference.

Tip
If you want all brackets to be scalable, go to Format > Spacing on the Menu bar to
open the Spacing dialog. Click on Category, select Brackets from the drop-down list.
and then select the option Scale all brackets.

Unpaired brackets
When using brackets in a formula, Math expects that for every opening bracket there will be a
closing one. If you forget to add a closing bracket, Math places an inverted question mark next to
where the closing bracket should have been placed. For example, lbrace a; b will result in
¿ because the right bracket rbrace is missing.
This inverted question mark disappears when all the brackets are paired. The previous example
could be fixed to lbrace a; b rbrace, resulting in {a ; b}. However, there are cases where an
unpaired bracket is necessary and for that you have the following options.

Non scalable brackets

A backslash \ is placed before a non scalable bracket to indicate that the subsequent character
should not be regarded as a bracket, but rather as a literal character.
For example, the unpaired brackets in the formula [ a; b [ would result in an inverted
question mark because Math expects that [ will be closed by ]. To fix the error, use the
backslash and insert \ [ a; b \ [ into the Formula Editor to obtain [a ; b [ as the result.

Scalable brackets
To create unpaired scalable brackets or braces in a formula, the markup commands left,
right, and none can be used.
Example
The following formula uses the stack command to create a two-line formula and adds a
bracket only to the right side of the stack.

abs x = left lbrace stack {x "for" x

>= 0 # -x "for" x < 0} right none {
|x|= x for x≥0
−x for x <0
This effect can be achieved by using the left lbrace command combined with the
right none command. The first command indicates that the left bracket is a lbrace
whereas the second command tells Math that the right bracket will be none, meaning that
no bracket will be added to the right side of the formula.

Recognizing functions
In the basic installation of Math, Math outputs functions in normal characters and variables in
italic characters. However, if Math fails to recognize a function, you can tell Math that you have
just entered a function. Entering the markup command func before a function forces Math to
recognize the following text as a function.
For a full list of functions within Math, see Appendix A, Commands Reference.

20 | LibreOffice 7.5 Math Guide

Some Math functions have to be followed by a number or a variable. If these are missing, Math
places an inverted question mark where the missing number or variable should be. To remove
the inverted question mark and correct the formula, you have to enter a number, a variable, or a
pair of empty brackets as a placeholder.

Tip
You can navigate through errors in a formula using the key F3 to move to the next
error or the key combination Shift+F3 to move to the previous error.

Formulas over multiple lines

Suppose you want to create a formula that requires more than one line, for example x=3 .
y=1
Your first reaction would be to press the Enter key. However, if you do that, the markup language
in the Formula Editor goes to a new line, but the resulting formula does not have two lines. To
add a new line to the formula you need to use the markup command newline.
Example
The examples below illustrate how the markup command newline can be used to add a
new line to a formula. The first one simply adds an Enter to break the line in the markup
language, which does not result in adding a new line. The second example uses the
newline command, yielding a two-line formula.
Markup Language Resulting Formula
x = 3
y = 1 x=3 y=1

x = 3 newline y = 1
x=3
y=1

It is not possible in Math to create multiple line formulas when a line ends with an equals sign
and you want to continue the formula on a new line without completing the term on the right side
of the equals sign. If you require a multiple line formula to have an equals sign at the end of a line
without a term after the equals sign, then use empty quotes “” or empty braces {} or the space
characters grave ` or tilde ˜.
By default, the alignment of a multiple line formula is center aligned. For more information on
alignment using the equals sign, see “Aligning formulas using equals sign” on page 24.

Spacing within formulas

Spacing between the element in a formula is not set by using space characters in the markup
language. To add spaces into a formula, use one of the following options:
• Grave ` to add a small space.
• Tilde ~ for a large space.
• Add space characters between quotes “ ”. These spaces will be considered as text.
Any spaces at the end of a line in the markup language are ignored by default. For more
information, see “Formula spacing” on page 53.

Adding limits to summations and integrals

The sum and int commands, used for summations and integrals respectively, can take the
parameters from and to if you want to set the lower and upper limits. The parameters from and

Chapter 1, Creating and Editing Formulas | 21

to can be used singly or together as shown by the following examples. For more information on
the sum and integral commands, see “Operators” on page 62.
Examples
Here are some examples of how to add upper and lower bounds to summations and
integrals. Note that you can use brackets to explicitly define which parts of the formula
correspond to the desired bounds.
Markup Language Resulting Formula
n
sum from k = 1 to n a_k ∑ ak
k=1
∞
sum to infinity 2^{-n} ∑ 2−n
n m
sum from{ i=1 } to{ n } sum
from{ j=1; i <> j } to{ m } x_ij ∑ ∑ x ij
i=1 j=1 ;i≠ j

x
int from 0 to x f(t) dt ∫ f (t) dt
0

x
int_0^x f(t) dt ∫0 f (t )dt
int from Re f ∫ℜ f

Writing derivatives
When writing derivatives, you have to tell Math that it is a fraction by using the over command.
The over command is combined with the character d for a total derivative or the partial
command for a partial derivative to achieve the effect of a derivative. Braces {} are used in each
side of the elements to surround them and make the derivative as shown by the following
examples.
Examples
Below are a few examples of how you can use Math to write derivatives:
Markup Language Resulting Formula
df
{df} over {dx}
dx
∂f
{partial f} over {partial y}
∂y
2
∂ f
{partial^2 f} over {partial t^2} 2
∂t

Note
To write function names with primes, as is normal in school notation, you must first
add the symbols to the catalog. See “Catalog customization” on page 50 for more
information.

22 | LibreOffice 7.5 Math Guide

Markup language characters as normal characters
Characters that are used as controls in markup language cannot be entered directly as normal
characters. These characters are: %, {, }, &, |, _, ^ and ". For example, you cannot write
2% = 0.02 in markup language and expect the same characters to appear in your formula. To
overcome this limitation in markup language, use one of the following methods:
• Use double quotes to mark that character as text, for example 2"%"= 0.02 will appear
in your formula as 2 %=0.02 . However, this method cannot be used for the double-
quote character itself, see “Text in formulas” below.
• Add the character to the Math Catalog, for example the double quote character.
• Use commands, for example lbrace and rbrace give you literal braces {} .

Note
The Special Characters dialog used by other LibreOffice components is not available
in Math. If you regularly require special characters in Math, then it is recommended
to add the characters to the Math Catalog. See “Catalog customization” on page 50
for more information.

Text in formulas
To include text in a formula, you have to enclose any text in double-quotes, for example x "
for " x >= 0 in markup language will create the formula x for x≥0 . All characters, except
double quotes, can be used in text.
However, if you require double quotes in formula text, then you have to create your text with
double quotes in LibreOffice Writer, then copy and paste the text into the Formula Editor as
shown in Figure 7.

Figure 7: Example of double quotes in formula text

The font used for text in a formula will be the default font that has been set in the Fonts dialog.
For more information on how to change fonts used in formulas, see “Changing formula
appearance” on page 24.
By default, text alignment is left-justified in formulas. For more information on how to change text
alignment, see “Adjusting formula alignment” on page 30.

Formatting text in formulas

Formatting commands are not interpreted within text used in formulas. If you want to use
formatting commands within formula text, then you must break up the text using double quotes in
the Formula Editor.

Chapter 1, Creating and Editing Formulas | 23

 Example
Enter the following in the Formula Editor:
"In " color blue bold "isosceles" "triangles, the base angles are
equal"
This markup creates the following text in a formula:
In isosceles triangles, the base angles are equal
This example shows how to use the markup commands color and bold to format the
word “isosceles”. Note that the commands are applied to the immediately subsequent text
within double quotes. Hence, the formatting commands do not apply to the remainder of
the text in the example because it is in a separate quote block.
The command color needs to be followed by the name of the desired color or to its RGB or
hexadecimal value. Refer to “Attributes” on page 64 for a list of predefined color names.

Aligning formulas using equals sign

LibreOffice Math does not have a command for aligning formulas on a particular character.
However, you can use a matrix to align formulas on a character and this character is normally the
equals sign (=). In addition, you can use the markup commands alignr, alignl and alignc
to set the alignment of each value inside the matrix to the right, left or center, respectively.
Example
The example below uses a matrix to align formulas on the equals sign. Notice how the
alignment commands align the contents of each position in the matrix.

matrix{ alignr x+y # {}={} # alignl 2 x+ y = 2

## alignr x # {}={} # alignl 2-y } x = 2− y

Note
The empty braces each side of the equals sign are necessary because the equals
sign is a binary operator and requires an expression on each side. You can use
spaces, or ` or ~ characters each side of the equals sign, but braces are
recommended as they are easier to see within the markup language.

You can reduce the spacing on each side of the equals sign if you change the inter-column
spacing of the matrix. See “Adjusting formula spacing” on page 28 for more information.

Changing formula appearance

This section describes how to change the font or font size in a selected formula and how to
change the default font or font size.

Note
If you have already inserted formulas into your document and you change the
default font or font size, only formulas inserted after the change in default font or
font size will use the new default settings. You have to individually change the font or
font size of formulas already inserted if you want these formulas to use the same font
or font size as the default settings.

24 | LibreOffice 7.5 Math Guide

 Tip
The extension “Formatting of all Math formulas” allows you to change font name and
font size for all or only for selected formulas in a document. You can download it and
read the installation and usage instructions here:
https://extensions.libreoffice.org/en/extensions/show/formatting-of-all-math-formulas

Formula font size

Current formula font size
To change the font size used for a formula already inserted in Math or another LibreOffice
component:
1) Click in the markup language in the Formula Editor.
2) Go to Format > Font size on the Menu bar to open the Font Sizes dialog (Figure 8).
3) Select a different font size using the Base size spinner or type a new font size in the Base
Size box.
4) Click OK to save your changes and close the dialog. An example result when you change
font size is shown below.
Example
Default font size 12pt: π ≃ 3.14159

After font size change to 18pt: π ≃ 3.14159

Figure 8: Font Sizes dialog

Default formula font size

To change the default font size used for all formulas in Math or another LibreOffice component:
1) Before inserting any formulas in your document, go to Format > Font size on the Menu
bar to open the Font Sizes dialog (Figure 8).
2) Select a different font size using the Base size spinner or type a new font size in the Base
Size box.
3) Click Default and confirm your changes to the base size font. Any formulas created from
this point on will use the new base size font for formulas.
4) Click OK to save your changes and close the Font Sizes dialog.

Chapter 1, Creating and Editing Formulas | 25

Font size options
The Font Sizes dialog (Figure 8) specifies the font sizes for a formula. Select a base size and all
elements of the formula will be scaled in relation to this base.
• Base size – all elements of a formula are proportionally scaled to the base size. To
change the base size, select or type in the desired point (pt) size. You can also use other
units of measure or other metrics, which are then automatically converted to points.
• Relative Sizes – in this section, you can determine the relative sizes for each type of
element with reference to the base size.
– Text – select the size for text in a formula relative to the base size.
– Indexes – select the relative size for the indexes in a formula in proportion to the base
size.
– Functions – select the relative size for names and other function elements in a formula
in proportion to the base size.
– Operators – select the relative size of the mathematical operators in a formula in
proportion to the base size.
– Limits – select the relative size for the limits in a formula in proportion to the base size.
This is used to determine the size for commands as from and to used in summations
and integrals.
• Default – click this button to save any changes as a default for all new formulas. A
confirmation message appears before saving any changes.

Formula fonts
Current formula fonts
To change the fonts used for the current formula in Math or another LibreOffice component:
1) Click in the markup language in the Formula Editor.
2) Go to Format > Fonts on the Menu bar to open the Fonts dialog (Figure 9).
3) Select a new font for each of the various options from the drop-down lists.
4) If the font you want to use does not appear in the drop-down list, click Modify and select
the option from the context menu to open a fonts dialog. Select the font you want to use
and click OK to add it to the drop-down list for that option.
5) Click OK to save your changes and close the Fonts dialog.

Default formula fonts

To change the default fonts used for all formulas in Math or another LibreOffice component:
1) Before inserting any formulas in your document, go to Format > Fonts on the Menu bar
to open the Fonts dialog (Figure 9).
2) Select a new font for each the various options from the drop-down lists.
3) If the font you want to use does not appear in the drop-down list, click Modify and select
the option from the context menu to open a fonts dialog. Select the font you want to use
and click OK to add it to the drop-down list for that option.
4) Click Default and confirm your changes to the fonts. Any formulas created from this point
on will use the new font for formulas.
5) Click OK to save your changes and close the Fonts dialog.

26 | LibreOffice 7.5 Math Guide

 Figure 9: Fonts dialog

Formula font options

Defines the fonts that can be applied to formula elements.
• Formula Fonts – defines the fonts used for the variables, functions, numbers and
inserted text that form the elements of a formula.
– Variables – selects the fonts for the variables in your formula. For example, in the
formula x=SIN(y), x and y are variables and will reflect the assigned font.
– Functions – selects the fonts for names and properties of functions. For example, the
functions in the formula x=SIN(y) are =SIN( ).
– Numbers – selects the fonts for the numbers in a formula.
– Text – defines the fonts for the text in a formula.
• Custom Fonts – this section of the Fonts dialog (Figure 9) defines fonts to format text
components in a formula. The three basic fonts Serif, Sans-serif and Fixed-width are
available. Other fonts can be added to each standard installed basic font using the
Modify button. Every font installed on a computer system is available for use.
– Serif – specifies the font to be used for the font serif format. Serifs are the small
"guides" that can be seen, for example, at the bottom of a capital A when the Times
serif font is used. Using serifs is quite helpful since it guides the eye of a reader in a
straight line and can speed up reading.
– Sans – specifies the font to be used for sans font formatting.
– Fixed – specifies the font to be used for fixed font formatting.
• Modify – click one of the options from the context menu to access the Fonts dialog,
where the font and attributes can be defined for the respective formula and for custom
fonts.
• Default – click this button to save any changes as a default for all new formulas. A
confirmation message appears before saving any changes.

Chapter 1, Creating and Editing Formulas | 27

 Note
When a new font is selected for a formula, the old font remains in the list alongside
the new one and can be selected again.

Note
Variables should be written in italics, so make sure that the Italic option is selected.
For the font you want to use. For all other elements, use the basic form of a font. The
style can be easily altered in the formula itself by using the commands italic or
bold to set these characteristics and nitalic or nbold to unset them.

Adjusting formula spacing

Use the Spacing dialog (Figure 10) to determine the spacing between formula elements. The
spacing is specified as a percentage in relation to the defined base size for font sizes.

Figure 10: Spacing dialog

Current formula spacing

To change the spacing used for the current formula in Math or another LibreOffice component:
1) Click in the markup language in the Formula Editor.
2) Go to Format > Spacing on the Menu bar to open the Spacing dialog (Figure 10).
3) Click Category and select one of the options from the drop-down list. The options in the
Spacing dialog change according to the category selected.
4) Enter new values for the spacing category and click OK.
5) Check the result in your formula. If not to your satisfaction, repeat the above steps.

Default formula spacing

To change the default spacing used for all formulas in Math or another LibreOffice component:
1) Before inserting any formulas in your document, go to Format > Spacing on the Menu
bar to open the Spacing dialog (Figure 10).
2) Click Category and select one of the options from the drop-down list. The options in the
Spacing dialog change according to the category selected.
3) Click Default and confirm your changes to the formula spacing. Any formulas created
from this point on will use the new spacing for formulas.
4) Click OK to save your changes and close the Spacing dialog.

28 | LibreOffice 7.5 Math Guide

 Note
If you have already inserted formulas into your document and you change the
spacing, only formulas inserted after the change in spacing will use the new default
settings. You have to individually change the spacing of formulas already inserted if
you want these formulas to use the same spacing as the default settings.

Spacing options
Use Category in the Spacing dialog (Figure 10) to determine the formula element for which you
would like to specify the spacing. The appearance of the dialog depends on the selected
category. A preview window shows you which spacing is modified through the respective boxes.
• Category – click this button to select the category for which you want to change the
spacing.
• Spacing – defines the spacing between variables and operators, between lines, and
between root signs and radicals.
– Spacing – determines the spacing between variables and operators
– Line Spacing – determines the spacing between lines.
– Root Spacing – determines the spacing between the root sign and radicals.
• Indexes – defines the spacing for superscript and subscript indexes.
– Superscript – determines the spacing for superscript indexes.
– Subscript – determines the spacing for subscript indexes.
• Fractions – defines the spacing between the fraction bar and the numerator or
denominator.
– Numerator – determines the spacing between the fraction bar and the numerator.
– Denominator – determines the spacing between the fraction bar and the denominator.
• Fraction Bars – defines the excess length and line weight of the fraction bar.
– Excess length – determines the excess length of the fraction line.
– Weight – determines the weight of the fraction line.
• Limits – defines the spacing between the sum symbol and the limit conditions.
– Upper limit – determines the spacing between the sum symbol and the upper limit.
– Lower limit – determines the spacing between the sum symbol and the lower limit.
• Brackets – defines the spacing between brackets and the content.
– Excess size (left/right) – determines the vertical distance between the upper edge of
the contents and the upper end of the brackets.
– Spacing – determines the horizontal distance between the contents and the upper end
of the brackets.
– Scale all brackets – scales all types of brackets. If you then enter ( a over b) in
the Formula Editor, the brackets will surround the whole height of the argument. You
normally achieve this effect by entering left ( a over b right ).
– Excess size – adjusts the percentage excess size. At 0% the brackets are set so that
they surround the argument at the same height. The higher the entered value is, the
larger the vertical gap between the contents of the brackets and the external border of
the brackets. The field can only be used in combination with Scale all brackets.
• Matrices – defines the relative spacing for the elements in a matrix.

Chapter 1, Creating and Editing Formulas | 29

 – Line spacing – determines the spacing between matrix elements in a row.
– Column spacing – determines the spacing between matrix elements in a column.
• Symbols – defines the spacing of symbols in relation to variables
– Primary height – defines the height of the symbols in relation to the baseline.
– Minimum spacing – determines the minimum distance between a symbol and
variable.
• Operators – defines the spacing between operators and variables or numbers.
– Excess size – determines the height from the variable to the operator upper edge.
– Spacing – determines the horizontal distance between operators and variables.
• Borders – adds a border to a formula. This option is particularly useful if you want to
integrate the formula into a text file in LibreOffice Writer by combining mathematical
formulas and text inside the same paragraph.
– Left – the left border is positioned between the formula and background.
– Right – the right border is positioned between the formula and background.
– Top – the top border is positioned between the formula and background.
– Bottom – the bottom border is positioned between the formula and background.
• Preview Field – displays a preview of the current selection.
• Default – saves any changes as default settings for all new formulas. A security
response will appear before saving these changes.

Note
If you are adding Math formulas into a LibreOffice Writer document, you may notice
spacing between the formula and the surrounding text even if you set all formula
borders to zero. This is because Math formulas are OLE objects embedded into a
frame that, by default, adds 0.2 cm to the left and right of the Math object.
You can remove that extra spacing in two ways. The first way is to edit the object
properties by right-clicking the Math object and then going to Properties > Wrap and
adjust the Spacing fields to the desired values. The second way is to modify the
spacing options of the default Formula frame style or create a new style. To learn
more on how to change the spacing of Math objects, refer to “Object spacing” on
page 38. For more information on how to edit styles in general, refer to the Styles
chapters in the Writer Guide.

Example
In the following example, Math objects are combined with text by removing all spacing both
from the formula and the frame style surrounding it. Because spacing is set to zero, the
spacing between text and formulas is achieved by simply adding a space character using
the keyboard space bar.
“Let c ij be a cost matrix and x ij ∈{0 ; 1 } be a decision variable defined for i=1,2 , ..., m
origins and for j=1,2 ,... , n destinations”.

Adjusting formula alignment

The alignment settings determine how formula elements located above one another are aligned
horizontally relative to each other.

30 | LibreOffice 7.5 Math Guide

 Note
It is not possible to align formulas on a particular character and formula alignment
does not apply to text elements. Text elements are always aligned to the left.

Current formula alignment

To change the alignment used for the current formula in Math or another LibreOffice component:
1) Click in the markup language in the Formula Editor.
2) Go to Format > Alignment on the Menu bar to open the Alignment dialog (Figure 11).
3) Select either Left, Centered, or Right for horizontal alignment.
4) Click OK and check the result in your formula. If not to your satisfaction, repeat the above
steps.

Figure 11: Alignment dialog

Note
Regardless of the alignment option selected in the Alignment dialog, it is possible to
align sections of a formula using the commands alignl, alignc and alignr. For
example, they can be useful to align formulas in matrices. These commands also
work for text elements.

Default formula alignment

To change the default alignment used for all formulas in Math or another LibreOffice component:
1) Before inserting any formulas in your document, go to Format > Alignment on the Menu
bar to open the Alignment dialog (Figure 11).
2) Select either Left, Centered, or Right for horizontal alignment.
3) Click Default and confirm your changes to the formula alignment. Any formulas created
from this point on will use the new alignment for formulas.
4) Click OK and check the result in your formula. If not to your satisfaction, repeat the above
steps.

Note
If you have already inserted formulas into a document and you change the formula
alignment, only formulas inserted after the change in alignment will use the new
default settings. You have to individually change the alignment of formulas already
inserted if you want them to use the same alignment as the default settings.

Chapter 1, Creating and Editing Formulas | 31

Changing formula color
You can change the color of characters used in a formula using markup language: the command
color followed by a color name, RGB value, or HTML hex value.
The color command only works on the formula element immediately after the color name, RGB
value, or hex value. For example, entering the markup language color red 5 times 4 gives
the result 5×4 . Only the number 5 is colored red.
To change the color of the whole formula, you have to enclose the whole formula within brackets.
For example, entering the markup language color red {5 times 4} gives the result 5×4 .

Named colors
For information on the named colors available in Math, see “Attributes” on page 64. These colors
are listed in the Attributes section of the Elements panel (Figure 4 on page 14).

RGB values
To use custom colors defined by RGB (Red, Green and Blue) values ranging from 0 to 255, use
the color rgb R G B markup command, where R, G, and B correspond to the Red, Green,
and Blue values of the desired color.
Example
In this example, the term “decision variable” uses the color defined by the RGB values 160,
82, 45.
"Let " x_ij " be a " color rgb 160 82 45 "decision variable " "in
the problem under consideration"
Math will create the following output:
Let x ij be a decision variable in the problem under consideration

Hex values
Math now supports HTML colors, defined by a hex number. Use the color hex 000000
markup command, where 00000 is the corresponding hex number. For example, the command
color hex FF0000 decision creates the output decision .

Background color
It is not possible to select a background color for formulas in LibreOffice Math. The background
color for a formula is by default the same color as the document or frame that the formula has
been inserted into. In LibreOffice Writer, you can use object properties to change the background
color for a formula. For more information, see “Background and borders” on page 39.

Formula library
If you regularly insert the same formulas into your documents, you can create a formula library
using formulas that you have created using the Formula Editor. Individual formulas can be saved
as separate files using the ODF format for formulas (file type .odf), or in MathML format (file
type .mml).
You can use either LibreOffice Math, Writer, Calc, Draw, or Impress to create formulas and build
up your formula library.

Using Math
1) Create a folder on your computer to contain your formulas and give the folder a
memorable name, for example Formula Library.

32 | LibreOffice 7.5 Math Guide

 2) In LibreOffice, go to File > New > Formula on the Menu bar, or click on Math Formula in
the Start Center to open LibreOffice Math and create your formula using the Formula
Editor. See “Formulas as separate documents or files” on page 11 for more information.
3) Go to File > Save As on the main Menu bar or use the keyboard shortcut Ctrl+Shift+S to
open a Save As dialog.
4) Navigate to the folder you have created for your formula library.
5) Type a memorable name for your formula in the File name box.
6) Select in the File type drop-down list either ODF Formula (.odf) or MathML 2.0 (.mml) as
the file type for the formula.
7) Click Save to save the formula and close the Save As dialog.

Note
MathML 2.0 stands for Mathematical Markup Language (MathML) Version 2.0.
MathML is an XML format that describes mathematical notation and enables the use
of mathematics in the World Wide Web. If you want to learn more about the MathML
format, visit its official website at https://www.w3.org/TR/MathML2/overview.html

Using Writer, Calc, Draw, or Impress

1) Create a folder on your computer to contain your formulas and give the folder a
memorable name, for example Formula Library.
2) Open a document using Writer, Calc, Draw, or Impress.
3) Go to Insert > Object > Formula Object on the Menu bar to open the Formula Editor
and create a formula. See “Formulas in LibreOffice documents” on page 12 for more
information.
4) Right-click on the formula object and select Save Copy as in the context menu to open a
Save As dialog.
5) Navigate to the folder you have created for your formula library.
6) Type a memorable name for your formula in the File name box.
7) Select in the File type drop-down list either ODF Formula (.odf) or MathML 2.0 (.mml) as
the file type for the formula.
8) Click Save to save the formula and close the Save As dialog.

Using your formula library

You cannot insert a formula from your library into a document by dragging and dropping using the
mouse, nor by using Insert > File on the Menu bar. You must insert a formula from your library
into a document as an OLE object.
1) Open your document in Writer, Calc, Draw, or Impress.
2) Go to Insert > Object > OLE Object on the Menu bar to open the Insert OLE Object
dialog.
3) Select the option Create from file.
4) Click Search to open your file browser dialog.
5) Navigate to the folder you have created for your formula library.
6) Select the formula you want to insert and click Open, or double-click on the formula you
want to insert.
7) Click OK to insert your formula as an OLE object in the document and close the OLE
Object dialog.

Chapter 1, Creating and Editing Formulas | 33

 Math Guide 7.3

Chapter 2,
Formulas in Writer
Introduction
When a formula is inserted into a document, LibreOffice Writer inserts the formula into a frame
and treats the formula as an OLE object. Double-clicking on an inserted formula will open the
Formula Editor in LibreOffice Math, allowing you to edit the formula. For more information on
creating and editing formulas, please refer to Chapter 1, Creating and Editing Formulas.
This chapter explains what options you can change for each individual formula within a Writer
document. Please refer to the chapters on styles in the Writer Guide for information on how to
change the default settings for frame styles for OLE objects.

Automatic formula numbering

Automatic numbering of formulas for cross-reference purposes can only be carried out in
LibreOffice Writer. The easiest way to add numbered formulas in sequence is to use the AutoText
entry fn (for ‘formula numbered’).

Numbering
1) Start a new line in your document.
2) Type fn and then press the F3 key. A two column table with no borders is inserted into
your document with the left column containing a sample formula and the right column
containing a reference number, as shown below.
2 (1)
E=mc
3) Delete the sample formula and insert your formula as an object in the left column.
4) Alternatively, you can first insert your formula into the document, then carry out Steps 1
and 2 above replacing the sample formula with your formula.

Cross-referencing
1) Click in your document where you want the cross-reference to appear.
2) Go to Insert > Cross-reference on the Menu bar to open the Fields dialog (Figure 12).
3) Click on the Cross-references tab, then select Text in the Type section.
4) In the Selection section, select the formula number you want to refer to.
5) In the Insert reference to section, select Reference and click Insert.
6) When you have finished creating cross-references, click Close to close the Fields dialog.

Tip
To insert the cross-reference number without parentheses, select Numbering instead
of Reference in the Insert reference to section.

Note
If you want to use square parentheses instead of round ones, or if you want the
cross-reference number to be separated from the formula by tabs instead of using a
table, then refer to the Writer Guide.

Chapter 2, Formulas in Writer | 35

 Figure 12: Fields Dialog – Cross-references tab

Anchoring formulas
A formula is treated as an object within Writer and its default anchoring is To character within a
paragraph when it is inserted into a document. To change the anchoring of a formula object:
1) Right-click on the selected formula object and select Anchor from the context menu.
2) Select a new anchoring option from the context sub-menu. The anchoring positions
available are To page, To paragraph, To character, or As character.
3) Alternatively, right-click on the selected formula object and select Properties from the
context menu, or go to Format > Frame and Object > Properties on the Menu bar to
open the Object dialog (Figure 13).
4) Make sure the Type tab is selected and select a new anchoring position from the Anchor
section.
5) Click OK to save your changes and close the Object dialog.

Note
The anchoring options are not available in the Object dialog when you are making
changes to the options available for frame styles. For more information on how to
modify frame styles, please refer to the chapters on styles in the Writer Guide.

36 | LibreOffice 7.5 Math Guide

 Figure 13: Object dialog – Type tab with Anchor options

Vertical alignment
The normal default setting for vertical alignment for formula objects is to use the text base line as
a reference. This default setting can be changed by modifying the Formula frame style; see the
chapters on styles in the Writer Guide for more information.
To change the vertical alignment position of an individual formula object (assuming that the As
character anchoring option is selected):
1) Right-click on the selected formula object and select Properties in the context menu, or
go to Format > Frame and Object > Properties to open the Object dialog (Figure 13).
2) Make sure the Type tab is selected and select a new alignment position in the drop-down
list in the Position section. The vertical alignment options available are Top, Bottom,
Center, or From bottom.
3) If necessary, type in the text box a plus or minus value for vertical alignment. This option
is only available if From bottom vertical alignment has been selected.
4) Select the type of text alignment from the drop-down list in the Position section. The text
alignment options available are Base line, Character, and Row.
5) Click OK to save your changes and close the Object dialog.

Note
If the Position section in the Object dialog is grayed out and not available, then go to
Tools > Options > LibreOffice Writer > Formatting Aids and uncheck the option
Math baseline alignment. This setting is stored with the document and applies to all
formulas within it. Any new documents created will also use this setting for Math
baseline alignment.

Chapter 2, Formulas in Writer | 37

Object spacing
A formula object, when inserted into a Writer document, has spacing on each side of the object.
The default value used for spacing is set within the frame style for formula objects and can be
changed by modifying the Formula frame style. See the chapters on styles in the Writer Guide for
more information.
To individually adjust the spacing for each formula object within your document:
1) Create your formula in your Writer document.
2) Right-click on your selected formula object and select Properties in the context menu, or
go to Format > Frame and Object > Properties to open the Object dialog.
3) Click on the Wrap tab to open the Wrap page in the Object dialog (Figure 14).
4) In the Spacing section, enter the spacing value for Left, Right, Top, and Bottom spacing.
5) Click OK to save your changes and close the Object dialog.

Figure 14: Object dialog – Wrap tab

Note
Object wrapping options will be grayed out if the object is anchored As Character. To
enable all wrapping options, you need to anchor the object To Page, To Paragraph,
or To Character. To change the anchor settings, right-click the formula object and
use the Anchor context menu to select the desired option.

38 | LibreOffice 7.5 Math Guide

Text mode
In large formulas placed within a line of text, the formula elements can often be higher than the
text height. Therefore, to make large formulas easier to read, it is recommended to always insert
large formulas into a separate paragraph of their own so that it is separated from text.
However, if it is necessary to place a large formula within a line of text, double-click on the
formula to open the Formula Editor and then go to Format > Text Mode on the Menu bar. The
Formula Editor will try to shrink the formula to fit the text height. The numerators and
denominators of fractions are shrunk, and the limits of integrals and sums are placed beside the
integral/sum sign, as shown in the following example.
Example
A formula in a separate paragraph:
5

∑ i2
i=2

and the same formula embedded into a line of text using text mode format: ∑5i=2 i 2

Background and borders

The default setting for background (area fill) and borders for formula objects is set by the Formula
frame style. To change the default setting for the Formula frame style, refer to the chapters on
styles in the Writer Guide. However, for individual formulas in your document, you can change
the background and borders.

Note
The size of the frame that a formula is placed in when inserted into a document
cannot be changed. The frame size for a formula object depends on the setting of
the formula font size. See “Formula font size” on page 25 for more information.

Below is an example of a formula using background color and borders.

n

∑ wi y i
i=1

Note that the background color and border properties are part of the Math OLE object and hence
cannot be defined using markup language.

Backgrounds
1) In your document, select the formula where you want to change the background.
2) Right-click on the formula and select Properties from the context menu, or go to Format
> Frame and Object > Properties on the Menu bar to open the object dialog.
3) Click on the Area tab and use the buttons at the top to select the type of fill you want to
use for your formula (Figure 15).
4) Select the options you want to use for your formula background. The options change
depending on the type of fill selected.
5) Click OK to save your changes and close the Object dialog.

Chapter 2, Formulas in Writer | 39

 Figure 15: Object dialog – Area tab

Borders
1) In your document, select the formula where you want to change the borders.
2) Right-click on the formula and select Properties from the context menu, or go to Format
> Frame and Object > Properties on the Menu bar to open the object dialog.
3) Click on the Borders tab and select the options you want to use for your formula borders
(Figure 16). Click OK to save your changes and close the Object dialog.

Figure 16: Object dialog – Borders tab

40 | LibreOffice 7.5 Math Guide

Quick insertion of formulas
If you know the markup language for your formula, you can quickly insert it into your Writer
document without opening the Formula Editor:
1) Enter the formula markup language into your document at the position where you want
the formula to be placed.
2) Select the markup language.
3) Go to Insert > Object on the Menu bar and select Formula Object to create a formula
from the selected markup language.
4) Alternatively you can use the key combination Ctrl + Insert to open the Insert OLE Object
dialog and then select Formula.

Chapter 2, Formulas in Writer | 41

 Math Guide 7.3

Chapter 3,
Formulas in Calc, Draw, and
Impress
Introduction
In Calc, Draw, and Impress, formulas are inserted as OLE objects without any background (area
fill) or borders. See Chapter 1, Creating and Editing Formulas for more information on inserting
formulas into a LibreOffice component.
Each formula object is inserted into a spreadsheet, drawing, or slide as follows:
• In Calc, formulas are inserted into a selected cell in a spreadsheet with no style assigned
to the formula object.
• In Draw and Impress, formulas are inserted into a central position on your drawing or
slide and, by default, are assigned the drawing object style Object with no fill and no line.
For more information on how to modify or assign drawing object styles, see the Draw
Guide or the Impress Guide.

Anchoring formulas
Calc
A formula object can be anchored into a spreadsheet as To Page (default setting), or as To Cell.
To change the anchoring type of formulas in a Calc spreadsheet:
1) Select the formula object in the spreadsheet.
2) Right-click on the formula and select Anchor > To Page or To Cell in the context menu.
3) Alternatively, go to Format > Anchor on the Menu bar and select To Page or To Cell.

Tip
If you insert a formula into a Calc spreadsheet and it appears out of scale, you can
fix it by right-clicking the formula object and then selecting the Original Size option
in the context menu.

Draw and Impress

When a formula is inserted into a drawing or slide, it is inserted as a floating OLE object and is
not anchored to any particular position in the drawing or slide.

Formula object properties

Formula objects in Calc, Draw, and Impress can be modified just like any other object that has
been placed in a spreadsheet, drawing, or presentation, with the exception of formula object size
and changing the format of any text within a formula. For more information on how to change
object properties, see the Calc Guide, Draw Guide and Impress Guide. For more information on
formula object size and formatting formula text, see Chapter 1, Creating and Editing Formulas.
The following points will help you select which dialog to use if you want to change the properties
of formula objects.
• For formula backgrounds, use the various options in the tabs of the Area dialog.
• For formula borders, use the various options in the Line dialog. Note that formula borders
are separate from cell borders in a Calc spreadsheet.
• To accurately re-position a formula object, use the various options in tabs of the Position
and Size dialog.

Chapter 3, Formulas in Calc, Draw, and Impress | 43

 • In Draw and Impress, you can arrange, align, group, flip, convert, break, combine, and
edit points of formula objects.
• You cannot change the text attributes of a formula object. The text used in a formula is
set when you create the formula in the Formula Editor.
• Formula object size is set by the formula font size when the formula is created in the
Formula Editor. The formula object size is protected in the Position and Size dialog, but
this can be deselected if you wish. However, this is not recommended as resizing a
formula object using the Position and Size dialog could lead to distortion of the formula
making it difficult to read.

Formulas in charts
A chart in a Calc spreadsheet is itself an OLE object, therefore, you cannot use the Formula
Editor to create and insert a formula directly into a chart. However, you can create both the Chart
and Math objects separately and later copy and paste the Math formula into the Chart object:
1) Create the chart using LibreOffice Calc. For a complete reference on how to create
charts, see Chapter 3 in the Calc Guide.
2) Click at any cell in your spreadsheet so that the Chart is no longer selected.
3) Insert a Math Formula object by clicking Insert > Object > Formula.
4) Type the desired formula into the Formula Editor.
5) After editing the formula, select the Math Formula object and press Ctrl+C to copy the
Formula object to the clipboard.
6) Double-click the chart object to start editing the chart and press Ctrl+V to paste the
Formula object into the chart.
7) Now you can position the object anywhere you want inside the chart.
Figure 17 shows an example of a Calc chart with a Math Formula object inside it, which in this
example is the sin(x ) function.

1.5

sin (x)
0.5

-0.5

-1

-1.5
0 50 100 150 200 250 300 350
Figure 17: Calc chart with a Math object inside it

To change the formula, you must repeat the whole process of creating, copying, and pasting the
Formula object into the chart.

44 | LibreOffice 7.5 Math Guide

Chemical formulas
The primary purpose of Math is to create mathematical formulas, but it can also be used to write
chemical formulas. However, in chemical formulas, the chemical symbols are normally written in
uppercase using non-italic characters. The following table shows some examples of chemical
formulas.
Construction Example Markup Language
Molecules H 2 SO 4 H_2 SO_4
238
Isotopes 92 U U lsub 92 lsup 238
2− 2-
Ions SO 4 or SO 4 SO_4^{2-{}} or SO_4^{2"-"}

To create chemical formulas using Math, change the font used for variables to a non-italic font.
For more information on how to change fonts in a formula, see “Formula fonts” on page 26.
For reversible reactions in chemical formulas, there is no symbol for a double arrow in Math. If
you have a font available with correct symbols for use in chemical formulas, then you can add
these symbols to the Catalog. See “Catalog customization” on page 50 for more information on
how to add symbols to the Catalog.

Chapter 3, Formulas in Calc, Draw, and Impress | 45

 Math Guide 7.3

Chapter 4,
Customization
Introduction
This chapter explains how you can customize LibreOffice Math to suit the way you create
formulas for use in LibreOffice documents. Also, refer to Chapter 14, Customizing LibreOffice, in
the Getting Started Guide for more general information on how to customize LibreOffice.

Floating dialogs
The Formula Editor and Elements panel can cover a large part of your document. To help create
more space and/or allow you to move either the Formula Editor or Elements panel out of the way,
you can turn both of them into floating dialogs.
1) Position the cursor on the frame.
2) Hold down the Ctrl key and double-click. This turns the Formula Editor into the
Commands dialog (Figure 18) and the Elements panel into the Elements dialog (Figure
19).

Figure 18: Commands dialog

Figure 19: Elements panel

To return the Commands dialog and Elements dialog to their default positions:
1) Position the cursor on the frame of the dialog, NOT the title bar at the top of the dialog.
2) Hold down the Ctrl key and double-click.

Adding keyboard shortcuts

You can add keyboard shortcuts to LibreOffice to make creating documents much easier and to
match your workflow. Below is an example of how to add a keyboard shortcut for inserting a Math
formula into a LibreOffice document.

Caution
When selecting new keyboard shortcuts, make sure that you do not select a
shortcut that is already in use by LibreOffice or your computer system.

Chapter 4, Customization | 47
Example keyboard shortcut
1) Go to Tools > Customize on the Menu bar to open the Customize dialog (Figure 20).
2) Click on the Keyboard tab to access the options available for adding keyboard shortcuts.

Figure 20: Customize dialog – Keyboard tab

3) Select the level of the new keyboard shortcut.
– Select LibreOffice if you want the new keyboard shortcut to be set for all components
of LibreOffice.
– Select Math if you want the new keyboard shortcut to be set for Math only.
4) In the Category list, select Insert.
5) In the Function list, select Import Formula.
6) In the Shortcut Keys list, select the key or keyboard combination that you want to use for
your new keyboard shortcut.
7) Click Modify and your keyboard shortcut will appear in the Keys list.
8) If necessary, continue to add keyboard shortcuts using the above steps.
9) Click OK to save your keyboard shortcuts and close the Customize dialog.

48 | LibreOffice 7.5 Math Guide

 Tip
If you frequently add formulas into Writer documents, you can set a shortcut to
quickly create Math Formulas. This can be done by following the steps described
above to assign a shortcut to the function Formula in the category Insert.
Be aware that there are two Formula commands available in the Customize dialog in
Writer and, although they have the same name, they correspond to different
LibreOffice commands. As shown in Figure 21, the first Formula command is used to
insert a calculated field in Writer, whereas the second Formula command is the one
used to insert new Math objects.

Figure 21: Assigning a shortcut to insert new Math objects in Writer

Keyboard customize options

The options for customizing keyboard shortcuts are as follows:
• LibreOffice – displays shortcut keys that are common to all LibreOffice components.
• Math, Writer, Calc, Draw, or Impress – displays the keyboard shortcuts for the open
and current LibreOffice component.
• Shortcut Keys – lists the shortcut keys and the associated commands. To assign or
modify the shortcut key for the command selected in the Function list, click a shortcut in
this list, and then click Modify.
• Functions – type function name in the text field for search it in Function list.
• Function – lists the function categories and the LibreOffice functions that you can assign
shortcut keys to.
– Category – lists the available function categories.
– Function – select a function that you want to assign a shortcut key to, select a key
combination in the Shortcut Keys list, and then click Modify. If the selected function
already has a shortcut key, it is displayed in the Keys list.
– Keys – displays the shortcut keys that are assigned to the selected function.
• Modify – assigns the key combination selected in the Shortcut Keys list to the command
selected in the Function list.
• Delete – deletes the selected element or elements without requiring confirmation.
• Load – replaces the shortcut key configuration with one that was previously saved.
• Save – saves the current shortcut key configuration, so that you can load it later.
• Reset – resets modified values back to the default values.

Chapter 4, Customization | 49
Catalog customization
If you regularly use a symbol that is not available in Math, you can add it to the Symbols dialog
(Figure 22) by using the Edit Symbols dialog (Figure 23).
You can add symbols to a symbol set, edit symbol sets, or modify symbol notations. You can also
define new symbol sets, assign names to symbols, or modify existing symbol sets.

Adding symbols
1) Go to Tools > Symbols on the Menu bar or click on the Symbols icon on the Tools
toolbar to open the Symbols dialog (Figure 22).
2) Click the Edit button to open Edit Symbols dialog (Figure 23).
3) Select a font in the Font drop-down list.
4) Select a symbol character that you want to add in the preview box. You may have to scroll
down in the preview box to locate the symbol you want to use. The small right preview
box displays the new symbol.
5) In the Symbol box, type a memorable name for the symbol you are adding.
6) In the Symbol set box, select a symbol set in the drop-down list to add your new symbol
to, or type a new name to create a new symbol set for your new symbol.
7) If required, select a font style from the Style drop-down list – Standard, Italic, Bold, or
Bold Italic.
8) Click Add, then click OK to close the Edit Symbols dialog. The new symbol and, if
created, new symbol set are now available for use.

Figure 22: Symbol dialog

50 | LibreOffice 7.5 Math Guide

 Figure 23: Edit Symbols dialog

Note
When a new symbol is added to the catalog, you can type a percentage sign (%)
followed by the new name into the markup language in the Formula Editor and your
new symbol will appear in the formula. Remember that symbol names are case
sensitive, for example, %prime is a different symbol to %Prime.

Note
There are numerous free fonts available that contain several symbols if you cannot
find a symbol to use in the fonts already installed on your computer. For example,
the STIX font was developed specially for writing mathematical and technical texts.
Also, the DejaVu and Lucida fonts have a wide range of symbols.

Note
By default, only those user-defined symbols that actually occur in the document are
stored with it. Sometimes it is useful to embed all the user-defined symbols, so that
when the document is transferred to another computer it can be edited by another
person. Go to Tools > Options > LibreOffice Math > Settings on the Menu bar and
uncheck Embed only used symbols (smaller file size) in the Miscellaneous
Options setion.

Editing symbols
Modifying symbol names
To change the name of a symbol:

Chapter 4, Customization | 51
 1) In the Edit Symbols dialog (Figure 23), select the symbol name you want to change from
the Old symbol drop-down list. The symbol appears in the left preview pane at the bottom
of the dialog.
2) Type a new name for the symbol in the Symbol text box, or select a new name in the
Symbol drop-down list. The new symbol name appears above the right preview pane at
the bottom of the Edit Symbols dialog.
3) Click Modify and the symbol name is changed.
4) Click OK to close the Edit Symbols dialog.

Moving symbols
To move a symbol from one symbol set to another:
1) In the Edit Symbols dialog (Figure 23), in the Old symbol set drop-down list, select the
symbol set where the symbol you want to move is located.
2) Select the symbol name you want move in the Old symbol drop-down list. The symbol
appears in the left preview pane at the bottom of the Edit Symbols dialog.
3) In the Symbol set drop-down list, select the symbol set that you want to move the symbol
to. The new symbol set name appears below the right preview pane at the bottom of the
Edit Symbols dialog.
4) Click Modify and the symbol is moved to the new symbol set.
5) Click OK to close the Edit Symbols dialog.

Deleting symbols
To delete a symbol from a symbol set:
1) In the Edit Symbols dialog (Figure 23), in the Old symbol set drop-down list, select the
symbol set from which you want to delete the symbol.
2) Select the symbol name you want to delete in the Old symbol drop-down list. The symbol
appears in the left preview pane at the bottom of the Edit Symbols dialog (Figure 23).
3) Click Delete and the symbol is deleted from the symbol set without any confirmation.
4) Click OK to close the Edit Symbols dialog.

Note
The only way you can delete a symbol set is by deleting all of the symbols in that set.
When you delete the last symbol from a set, the set is also deleted.

Options for editing symbols

The fields in the Edit Symbols dialog (Figure 23) are as follows:
• Old symbol – select the name of the current symbol. The symbol, the name of the
symbol, and the set that the symbol belongs to are displayed in the left preview pane at
the bottom of the dialog.
• Old symbol set – this list box contains the name of the current symbol set. You can also
select a different symbol set using this list box.
• Symbol – lists the names for the symbols in the current symbol set. Select a name from
the list or type a name for a newly added symbol.
• Symbol set – this list box contains the names of all existing symbol sets. You can modify
a symbol set or create a new one.
• Font – displays the name of the current font and enables you to select a different font.

52 | LibreOffice 7.5 Math Guide

 • Subset – if you selected a non-symbol font in the Font list box, you can select a Unicode
subset in which to place your new or edited symbol. When a subset has been selected,
all symbols belonging to this subset of the current symbol set are displayed in the
Symbol list.
• Style – the current style of font is displayed. You can change the font style by selecting
one from the list box.
• Add – click this button to add the symbol shown in the right preview window to the
current symbol set. It will be saved under the name displayed in the Symbol list. You
must specify a name under Symbol or Symbol set to be able to use the Add button.
Names cannot be used more than once.
• Modify – click this button to replace the name of the symbol shown in the left preview
window (the old name is displayed in the Old symbol list) with the new name you have
entered in the Symbol list.
• Delete – click this button to remove the symbol shown in the left preview window from
the current symbol set. There will be confirmation of deletion. Deleting the last remaining
symbol of a symbol set also deletes the symbol set.
• Cancel – click this button at any time to close the dialog without saving any of the
changes.

Formula spacing
The grave accent (`) inserts an additional small space and the tilde (~) inserts an additional large
space into formulas. However, in the basic installation of LibreOffice, these symbols are ignored
when they occur at the end of a formula. If you are working with running text in a formula, it may
be necessary to include spacing at the end of formulas as well. This customization is only
required when you are working with a Math document and is not required when you are inserting
a formula into another LibreOffice component.
To add spacing at the end of formula in Math, go to Tools > Options > LibreOffice Math >
Settings on the Menu bar and uncheck Ignore ~ and ` at the end of the line in the
Miscellaneous Options section.

Note
To customize LibreOffice Math settings, you need to start LibreOffice Math and then
navigate to Tools > Options > LibreOffice Math > Settings.

Scaling of code in the Formula Editor input window

By default, the code in the Formula Editor input window (Figure 1) is scaled to 100%. You can
change the scaling factor by going to Tools > Options > LibreOffice Math > Settings on the
Menu bar and changing the percent in the Scaling code input window box in the Miscellaneous
Options section. For example, if you change the scaling to 150%, the code in the input window
will appear larger. This setting affects the Formula Editor in all LibreOfice components. However,
the LibreOffice Math section in the Options dialog can only be accessed from within the Math
component. It is not available when you are editing a formula in a LibreOffice document.

Extensions
If you create formulas frequently in your documents, you can customize LibreOffice by adding
extensions that are designed to help you create formulas. Extensions are easily installed using

Chapter 4, Customization | 53
the Extension Manager. For more information on how to install extensions, see Chapter 14,
Customizing LibreOffice, in the Getting Started Guide.
A commonly used extension is Formatting of All Math Formulas. It allows you to format all
Math formulas in a Writer, Calc, Draw, or Impress document. With it you can change the font
names and font sizes of all formulas in the document. For more information on this extension, go
to https://extensions.libreoffice.org/en/extensions/show/formatting-of-all-math-formulas.

54 | LibreOffice 7.5 Math Guide

 Math Guide 7.3

Chapter 5,
Exporting and Importing
MathML format
In addition to exporting documents as PDFs, as described in the Getting Started Guide,
LibreOffice offers the possibility of exporting formulas in the MathML format. This allows you or
another person to insert formulas into documents that were created in other software, for
example, Microsoft Office or an internet browser.

Note
Some internet browsers do not fully support the MathML format and your formula
may not display correctly.

If you are working on a Math document, go to File > Save as on the Menu bar or use the
keyboard combination Ctrl+Shift+S to open the Save as dialog. Select MathML from the list of
available file formats in File type to save your formula as MathML.
If you are working in another LibreOffice component, right-click on the formula object and select
Save copy as from the context menu to open the Save as dialog. Select MathML from the list of
available file formats in File type to save your formula object as MathML.
In Math you can also import MathML formulas. Use Tools > Import MathML from clipboard on
the Menu bar.

Microsoft file formats

To control how formulas in Microsoft format are imported and exported using LibreOffice, go to
Tools > Options > Load/Save > Microsoft Office on the Menu bar and select or deselect the
options for MathType to LibreOffice Math or reverse.
• [L]: Load and convert the object
• [S]: Convert and save the object

[L]: Load and convert the object

Select this option if Microsoft OLE objects are to be converted into the specified LibreOffice OLE
objects when a Microsoft document is opened in LibreOffice. For formulas, any embedded
MathType objects must not exceed the MathType 3.1 specifications to be successfully loaded
and converted. Information on MathType format can be found at
https://docs.wiris.com/en/mathtype/office_tools/microsoft_office.
If a document containing OMML formulas has been saved in .docx format and then converted to
the older .doc format, then any OMML objects are converted into graphics, which will be
displayed in LibreOffice as graphics.

[S]: Convert and save the object

Select this option if LibreOffice OLE objects are to be converted and saved in Microsoft file
format. LibreOffice converts any formulas into a format that can be read and modified by
Microsoft Equation Editor and MathType.
When this option is not selected, the formula is treated as an OLE object on conversion into
a .doc format and remains linked to LibreOffice. A double-click on the object in Microsoft Office
will attempt to launch LibreOffice.

56 | LibreOffice 7.5 Math Guide

 Math Guide 7.3

Appendix A,
Commands Reference
Introduction
This appendix lists the operators and commands that are available for use in the Formula Editor
when you are creating formulas.
The more common operators and commands can be entered by clicking on the appropriate icon
in the Elements panel. Where there is no icon displayed in the following tables for the Elements
panel, then you have to enter the operator or command into the Formula Editor using markup
language.

Note
In the markup language shown in the following tables, you have to replace the place
holder <?> with the value you want to use in your formulas.

Unary/binary operator commands

To access the icons used for entering markup language for unary/binary operator commands into
the Formula Editor, select Unary/Binary Operators from the drop-down list at the top of the
Elements panel.
Table 3: Unary/binary commands
Operation Markup language Example formula
Plus + +1
Minus - −1
Plus/minus +- or plusminus ±1
Minus/plus -+ or minusplus ∓1
Addition <?> + <?> A +B
Subtraction <?> - <?> A−B
Multiplication (Dot) <?> cdot <?> A⋅B
Multiplication <?> times <?> A×B
Multiplication (*) <?> * <?> A∗B
A
Division (Fraction) {<?>} over {<?>}
B
A
Frac (Fraction) frac {<?>} {<?>}
B
Division <?> div <?> A÷B
Division (Slash) <?> / <?> or <?> slash <?> A/B
A
Division (Wideslash) {<?>} wideslash {<?>}
B
B
Division (Counter Wideslash) <?> widebslash <?>
A
Concatenate <?> circ <?> A∘B
Boolean NOT neg <?> ¬A
Boolean AND <?> and <?> or <?> & <?> A∧B
Boolean OR <?> or <?> A∨B

58 | LibreOffice 7.5 Math Guide

 Backslash <?> bslash <?> A ∖B
Slash in circle <?> odivide <?> A⊘B
Small multiply symbol in <?> odot <?> A⊙B
circle
Subtract symbol in circle <?> ominus <?> A⊖B
Add symbol in circle <?> oplus <?> A⊕B
Multiply symbol in circle <?> otimes <?> A⊗B
User defined binary operator <?> boper ????? <?> A binOp B
User defined unary operator uoper ????? <?> unOp B

Relation commands
To access the icons used for entering markup language for relations commands into the Formula
Editor, select Relations from the drop-down list at the top of the Elements panel.
Table 4: Relation commands
Operation Markup language Example formula
Is equal <?> = <?> A=B
Is not equal <?> <> <?> or <?> neq <?> A≠B
Is less than <?> < <?> or <?> lt <?> A <B
Is less than or equal to <?> <= <?> A≤B
Is less than or equal to <?> leslant <?> A⩽B
Is greater than <?> > <?> or <?> gt <?> A >B
Is greater than or equal to <?> >= <?> A≥B
Is greater than or equal to <?> geslant <?> A⩾B
Is much less than <?> << <?> or <?> ll <?> A ≪B
Is much greater than <?> >> <?> or <?> gg <?> A ≫B
Is approximately equal <?> approx <?> A≈B
Is similar to <?> sim <?> A∼B
Is similar to or equal <?> simeq <?> A≃B
Is congruent to <?> equiv <?> A≡B
Is proportional to <?> prop <?> A∝B
Is parallel to <?> parallel <?> A∥B
Is orthogonal to <?> ortho <?> A⊥B
Divides <?> divides <?> A∣B
Does not divide <?> ndivides <?> A ∤B
Toward <?> toward <?> A →B
Double arrow left <?> dlarrow <?> A⇐B
Double arrow left and right <?> dlrarrow <?> A⇔B
Double arrow right <?> drarrow <?> A ⇒B

Appendix A, Commands Reference | 59

 Precedes <?> prec <?> A≺B
Succeeds <?> succ <?> A≻B
Precedes or equal to <?> preccurlyeq <?> A≼B
Succeeds or equal to <?> succcurlyeq <?> A≽B
Precedes or equivalent to <?> precsim <?> A≾B
Succeeds or equivalent to <?> succsim <?> A≿B
Not precedes <?> nprec <?> A⊀B
Not succeeds <?> nsucc <?> A⊁B
Definition <?> def <?> A≝B
Corresponding symbol
image of
<?> transl <?> A⊷B
Corresponding symbol
original of
<?> transr <?> A⊶B

Set operation commands

To access the icons used for entering markup language for set operation commands into the
Formula Editor, select Set Operations from the drop-down list at the top of the Elements panel.
Table 5: Set operation commands
Operation Markup language Example formula
Is in <?> in <?> A ∈B
Is not in <?> notin <?> A ∉B
Owns <?> owns <?> or <?> ni <?> A∋B
Intersection <?> intersection <?> A∩B
Union <?> union <?> A∪B
<?> setminus <?> or
Difference
<?> bslash <?>
A ∖B
Quotient set (slash) between
characters
<?> slash <?> A/B
Subset <?> subset <?> A⊂B
Subset or equal to <?> subseteq <?> A⊆B
Superset <?> supset <?> A⊃B
Superset or equal to <?> supseteq <?> A⊇B
Not subset <?> nsubset <?> A⊄B
Not subset or equal to <?> nsubseteq <?> A⊈B
Not superset <?> nsupset <?> A⊅B
Not superset or equal to <?> nsupseteq <?> A⊉B
Empty set emptyset ∅
Aleph (cardinal numbers) aleph ℵ
Natural numbers set setN ℕ

60 | LibreOffice 7.5 Math Guide

 Integers set setZ ℤ
Set of rational numbers setQ ℚ
Real numbers set setR ℝ
Complex numbers set setC ℂ

Functions
To access the icons used for entering markup language for function commands into the Formula
Editor, select Functions from the drop-down list at the top of the Elements panel.
Table 6: Function commands
Operation Markup language Example formula
Absolute value abs{<?>} |A|
Factorial fact{<?>} A!
Square root sqrt{<?>} √A
A
Nth root nroot{<?>}{<?>} √B
B
Power <?>^{<?>} A
A
Natural exponential function func e^{<?>} e
Natural logarithm ln(<?>) ln ( A)
Exponential function exp(<?>) exp( A)
Logarithm log(<?>) log( A)
Sine sin(<?>) sin( A)
Cosine cos(<?>) cos ( A)
Tangent tan(<?>) tan( A)
Cotangent cot(<?>) cot ( A)
Hyperbolic sine sinh(<?>) sinh ( A)
Hyperbolic cosine cosh(<?>) cosh ( A)
Hyperbolic tangent tanh(<?>) tanh( A )
Hyperbolic cotangent coth(<?>) coth( A)
Inverse sine or arcsine arcsin(<?>) arcsin ( A)
Inverse cosine or arccosine arccos(<?>) arccos ( A)
Inverse tangent or arctangent arctan(<?>) arctan ( A)
Inverse cotangent or arccotangent arccot(<?>) arccot ( A )
Inverse or area hyperbolic sine arsinh(<?>) arsinh ( A )
Inverse or area hyperbolic cosine arcosh(<?>) arcosh ( A)
Inverse or area hyperbolic tangent artanh(<?>) artanh ( A)
Inverse or area hyperbolic cotangent arcoth(<?>) arcoth ( A)
Back epsilon backepsilon ∍

Appendix A, Commands Reference | 61

 Subscript <?> sub <?> AB

Operators
To access the icons used for entering markup language for operator commands into the Formula
Editor, select Operators from the drop-down list at the top of the Elements panel.
Table 7: Operator commands
Operation Markup language Example formula
Limes lim <?> lim A
Limes subscript bottom lim from{<?>} <?> lim B
A
A
Limes superscript top lim to{<?>} <?> lim B
B
Limes sup/sub script lim from{<?>} to{<?>} <?> lim C
A

Limes inferior liminf <?> lim inf A

Limes superior limsup <?> lim sup A
Sum sum <?> ∑a
Sum subscript bottom sum from{<?>} <?> ∑B
A
A
Sum superscript top sum to{<?>} <?>
∑B
B
Sum sup/sub script sum from{<?>} to{<?>} <?> ∑C
A

Product prod <?> ∏A

Product subscript bottom prod from{<?>} <?> ∏B
A
A
Product superscript top prod to{<?>} <?>
∏B
B
Product sup/sub script prod from{<?>} to{<?>} <?> ∏C
A

Coproduct coprod <?> ∐A

Coproduct subscript
bottom
coprod from{<?>} <?> ∐B
A
A
Coproduct superscript top coprod to{<?>} <?>
∐B
B
coprod from{<?>} to{<?>}
Coproduct sup/sub script
<?> ∐C
A

Integral int <?> ∫A

Integral subscript bottom int from{<?>} <?> ∫B
A

62 | LibreOffice 7.5 Math Guide

 A
Integral superscript top int to{<?>} <?>
∫B
B

Integral sup/sub script int from{<?>} to{<?>} <?> ∫C

A

Double integral iint <?> ∬A

Double integral subscript
bottom
iint from{<?>} <?> ∬B
A
A
Double integral
superscript top
iint to{<?>} <?>
∬B
B
Double integral sup/sub
script
iint from{<?>} to{<?>} <?> ∬C
A

Triple integral iiint <?> ∭A

Triple integral subscript
bottom
iiint from{<?>} <?> ∭B
A
A
Triple integral superscript
top
iiint to{<?>} <?>
∭B
B
Triple integral sup/sub iiint from{<?>} to{<?>}
script <?> ∭C
A

Curve integral lint <?> ∮A

Curve integral subscript
bottom
lint from{<?>} <?> ∮B
A
A
Curve integral superscript
top
lint to{<?>} <?>
∮B
B
Curve integral sup/sub
script
lint from{<?>} to{<?>} <?> ∮C
A

Double curve integral llint <?> ∯A

Double curve integral
subscript bottom
llint from{<?>} <?> ∯B
A
A
Double curve integral
superscript top
llint to{<?>} <?>
∯B
B
Double curve integral llint from{<?>} to{<?>}
sup/sub script <?> ∯C
A

Triple curve integral lllint <?> ∰A

Triple curve integral
subscript bottom
lllint from{<?>} <?> ∰B
A
A
Triple curve integral
superscript top
lllint to{<?>} <?>
∰B
B
Triple curve integral lllint from{<?>} to{<?>}
sup/sub script <?> ∰C
A

Appendix A, Commands Reference | 63

 Note
For customized operators, use the command oper followed by your custom
operator. For example, entering oper OP from 0 to 1 A will give the formula
1

OP
0
A .

Attributes
To access the icons used for entering markup language for attribute commands into the Formula
Editor, select Attributes from the drop-down list at the top of the Elements panel, or click the
Attributes icon in the Elements dialog.
Table 8: Attribute commands
Operation Markup language Example formula
Acute accent acute <?> Á
Grave accent grave <?> À
Breve breve <?> Ă
Circle circle <?> Å
Dot dot <?> Ȧ
Double dot ddot <?> Ä
Triple dot dddot <?> ⃛
A
Line above bar <?> Ā
Vector arrow vec <?> ⃗
A
Harpoon harpoon <?> ⃑
A
tilde <?> ~
Tilde A
Circumflex hat <?> A^
Reverse circumflex check <?> Ǎ
Large vector arrow widevec {<?>} ⃗
AB
Large harpoon wideharpoon <?> ⃑
AB
widetilde {<?>} ~
Large tilde AB
Large circumflex widehat {<?>} ^
AB
Line over overline {<?>} AB
Line below underline {<?>} AB
Line through overstrike {<?>} AB
Transparent (blank phantom {<?>} A B
placeholder to create space)
Bold font bold <?> AB
Not bold font nbold <?> AB
Italic font ital <?> or italic <?> AB
Not italic font nitalic <?> AB

64 | LibreOffice 7.5 Math Guide

Resize size <?> {<?>} AB
Change font font <?> {<?>} AB
Color black color black {<?>} AB
Color blue color blue {<?>} AB
Color green color green {<?>} AB
Color red color red {<?>} AB
Color cyan color cyan {<?>} AB
Color aqua (same as cyan) color aqua {<?>} AB
Color magenta color magenta {<?>} AB
Color fuchsia (same as
magenta
Color fuchsia {<?>} AB
Color yellow color yellow {<?>} AB
Color gray color gray {<?>} AB
Color lime color lime {<?>} AB
Color maroon color maroon {<?>} AB
Color navy color navy {<?>} AB
Color olive color olive {<?>} AB
Color purple color purple {<?>} AB
Color silver color silver {<?>} AB
Color teal color teal {<?>} AB
RGB colors color rgb R G B {<?>} AB
Hexadecimal colors color hex 000000 {<?>} AB
Color coral color coral {<?>} AB
Color midnight color midnightblue {<?>} AB
Color crimson color crimson {<?>} AB
Color violet color violet {<?>} AB
Color orange color orange {<?>} AB
Color orangered color orangered {<?>} AB
Color seagreen color seagreen {<?>} AB
Color indigo color indigo {<?>} AB
Color hotpink color hotpink {<?>} AB
Color lavender color lavender {<?>} AB

Note
The font command changes the font type. The first placeholder is replaced with the
name of the font and the second placeholder is replaced with your formula values or
text. The default fonts are Serif, Sans, or Fixed. If you have added custom fonts to
Math (see “Formula fonts” on page 26), then you can replace the first placeholder
with the custom font name.

Appendix A, Commands Reference | 65

Brackets
To access the icons used for entering markup language for bracket commands into the Formula
Editor, select Brackets from the drop-down list at the top of the Elements panel.
Table 9: Bracket commands
Operation Markup language Example formula
Group brackets (not
displayed in formula)
{<?>} AB

Round brackets (<?>) ( AB)

Left round bracket only \(<?> (A
Right round bracket only <?>\) A)
Square brackets [<?>] [ AB]
Left square bracket only \[<?> [A
Right square bracket only <?>\] A]
Double square brackets ldbracket <?> rdbracket ⟦ AB⟧
Left double square bracket \ldbracket <?> ⟦A
only
Right double square <?> \rdbracket A⟧
bracket only
Braces lbrace <?> rbrace {AB}
Left brace only \lbrace <?> {A
Right brace only <?> \rbrace A}
Angle brackets langle <?> rangle ⟨ AB ⟩
Left angle bracket only \langle <?> ⟨A
Right angle bracket only <?> \rangle A⟩
Operator brackets langle <?> mline <?> rangle ⟨ AB|CD ⟩
Ceiling (upper half square lceil <?> rceil ⌈ AB⌉
brackets)
Left ceiling only \lceil <?> ⌈A
Right ceiling only <?> \rceil A⌉
Floor (lower half square lfloor <?> rfloor ⌊ AB⌋
brackets)
Left floor only \lfloor <?> ⌊A
Right floor only <?> \rfloor A⌋
Single lines lline <?> rline |AB|
Left single line only \lline <?> |A
Right single line only <?> \rline A|
Double lines ldline <?> rdline ‖AB‖
Left double line only \ldline <?> ‖A
Right double line only <?> \rdline A‖

66 | LibreOffice 7.5 Math Guide

Scalable round brackets left ( <?> right )
( BA )
Scalable left round bracket
only
left ( <?> right none ( BA
B)
Scalable right round A
left none <?> right )
bracket only

Scalable square brackets left [ <?> right ]

[ ]
A
B
Scalable left square
bracket only
left [ <?> right none
[A
B
Scalable right square
bracket only
left none <?> right ]
A
B ]
Scalable double square
brackets
left ldbracket <?> right
rdbracket ⟦ ⟧
A
B
Scalable left double
square bracket only
left ldbracket <?> right
none ⟦ A
B
Scalable right double
square bracket only
left none <?> right
rdbracket
A
B ⟧
Scalable braces
left lbrace <?> right
rbrace { }
A
B

Scalable left brace only

left lbrace {<?>} right
none {A
B

Scalable right brace only

left none {<?>} right
rbrace
A
B }
Scalable angle brackets
left langle <?> right
rangle ⟨ ⟩
A
B
Scalable left angle bracket
only
left langle {<?>} right
none ⟨ A
B
Scalable right angle
bracket only
left none {<?>} right
rangle
A
B ⟩
Scalable operator
brackets
left langle <?> mline <?>
right none ⟨| ⟩
A C
B D
Scalable left operator
bracket
left langle <?> mline <?>
right none ⟨|A C
B D
Scalable right operator
bracket
left none <?> mline <?>
right rangle | ⟩
A C
B D
Scalable ceiling (upper
half square brackets)
left lceil <?> right rceil
⌈ ⌉
A
B

Appendix A, Commands Reference | 67

 Scalable left ceiling left lceil <?> right none
⌈ A
B

Scalable right ceiling left none <?> right rceil

A
B ⌉
Scalable floor (lower half
square brackets)
left lfloor <?> right
rfloor ⌊ ⌋ A
B

Scalable left floor left lfloor <?> right none

⌊ A
B

Scalable right floor left none <?> right rfloor

A
B ⌋
Scalable single lines left lline <?> right rline
|| A
B

Scalable left single line left lline <?> right none

| A
B

Scalable right single line left none <?> right rline

A
B |
Scalable double lines
left ldline <?> right
rdline ‖‖ A
B

Scalable left double line left ldline <?> right none ‖ A

B

Scalable right double line left none <?> right rdline

A
B ‖
D
{<?>} overbrace {<?>}
Scalable top brace
⏞
ABC

Scalable bottom brace {<?>} underbrace {<?>} ⏟

ABC
D

Formats
To access the icons used for entering markup language for format commands into the Formula
Editor, select Formats from the drop-down list at the top of the Elements panel.
Table 10: Format commands
Operation Markup language Example formula
<?>^{<?>} or <?>sup{<?>} or 10
Power (superscript right)
<?>rsup{<?>} 20
<?>_{<?>} or <?>sub{<?>} or
Subscript right 2010
<?>rsub{<?>}
10
Superscript left <?>lsup{<?>} 20
Subscript left <?>lsub{<?>} 10 20
10
Superscript center <?>csup{<?>} 20

68 | LibreOffice 7.5 Math Guide

 Subscript center <?>csub{<?>} 20
10

newline
123
New line
CD
Small gap ` 123 456
Blank or large gap ~ 123 456
No space (suppresses
space between elements)
nospace {<?>} 12+4+5

alignl <?>
ABC
Align left
D

alignc <?>
ABC
Align center
D

alignr <?>
ABC
Align right
D

binom{<?>}{<?>}
AB
Vertical stack (2 elements)
12
AB
Vertical stack (more than 2
elements)
stack{<?> # <?> # <?>} 12
CD
matrix{<?> # <?> ## <?> # AB 12
Matrix stack
<?>} 34 CD

Note
By default, text characters are aligned to the center in a formula. Use the alignl
and alignr commands to align text characters in a formula to the left or right when
a formula has more than one line. You can also use the align commands in
conjunction with the stack commands to align multi-line formulas on a specific
formula element, for example, the equals sign (=).

Others
To access the icons used for entering markup language for other commands into the Formula
Editor, select Others from the drop-down list at the top of the Elements panel, or click the Others
icon in the Elements dialog.
Table 11: Other commands
Operation Markup language Example formula
Placeholder <?>
Infinity infinity or infty ∞
Partial derivative or set margin partial ∂
Nabla vector operator nabla ∇
Existential quantifier, there is at
least one
exists ∃
Existential quantifier, there does
not exist
notexists ∄

Appendix A, Commands Reference | 69

 Universal quantifier, for all forall ∀
H-bar constant hbar ℏ
Lambda bar lambdabar ƛ
Real part of a complex number re ℜ
Imaginary part of a complex im ℑ
number
Weierstrass p function wp ℘
Laplace transformation laplace ℒ
Left arrow leftarrow ←
Right arrow rightarrow →
Up arrow uparrow ↑
Down arrow downarrow ↓
Ellipsis dotslow …
Math axis ellipsis dotsaxis ⋯
Vertical ellipsis dotsvert ⋮
Upward diagonal ellipsis dotsup or dotsdiag ⋰
Downward diagonal ellipsis dotsdown ⋱
Back epsilon backepsilon ∍

Greek characters
Greek characters are normally entered into a formula using the Symbols dialog (see “Greek
characters” on page 15 for more information). However, if you know the name of the Greek
character, you can type a percentage sign (%) followed by the name of the Greek character into
the Formula Editor.
For uppercase Greek characters, type the name using uppercase characters, for example
%BETA Β (see Table 12 for a full list of uppercase Greek characters). For lowercase Greek
characters, type the name using lowercase characters, for example %beta β (see Table 13 for a
full list of lowercase Greek characters)
Italic Greek characters can also be entered into a formula by typing the character i after the
percentage sign (%) and before the name of the Greek character, for example, %iPI Π for
uppercase and %ipi for lowercase π . See Table 14 for a full list of italic uppercase Greek
characters and Table 15 for a full list of italic lowercase Greek characters.

Note
In localized versions of LibreOffice, the names of Greek characters are also
localized. If a document is not localized to the same language, then the names of
Greek characters in the following tables may not work correctly. If this happens, you
can use the Symbols dialog to select the required Greek character. When selected in
the Symbols dialog, the name of the Greek character is displayed at the bottom of
the Symbols dialog in the correct language. See “Greek characters” on page 15 for
more information on Greek characters and the Symbols dialog.

70 | LibreOffice 7.5 Math Guide

Table 12: Uppercase Greek characters
%ALPHA Α %BETA Β %GAMMA Γ %DELTA Δ
%EPSILON Ε %ZETA Ζ %ETA Η %THETA Θ
%IOTA Ι %KAPPA Κ %LAMBDA Λ %MU Μ
%NU Ν %XI Ξ %OMICRON Ο %PI Π
%RHO Ρ %SIGMA Σ %TAU Τ %UPSILON Υ
%PHI Φ %CHI Χ %PSI Ψ %OMEGA Ω

Table 13: Lowercase Greek characters

%alpha α %beta β %gamma γ %delta δ
%varepsilon ε %zeta ζ %eta η %theta θ
%iota ι %kappa κ %lambda λ %mu μ
%nu ν %xi ξ %omicron ο %pi π
%rho ρ %varsigma ς %sigma σ %tau τ
%upsilon υ %varphi φ %chi χ %psi ψ
%omega ω %vartheta ϑ %phi ϕ %varpi ϖ
%varrho ϱ %epsilon ϵ

Table 14: Uppercase italic Greek characters

%iALPHA Α %iBETA Β %iGAMMA Γ %iDELTA Δ
%iEPSILON Ε %iZETA Ζ %iETA Η %iTHETA Θ
%iIOTA Ι %iKAPPA Κ %iLAMBDA Λ %iMU Μ
%iNU Ν %iXI Ξ %iOMICRON Ο %iPI Π
%iRHO Ρ %iSIGMA Σ %iTAU Τ %iUPSILON Υ
%iPHI Φ %iCHI Χ %iPSI Ψ %iOMEGA Ω
Table 15: Lowercase italic Greek characters
%ialpha α %ibeta β %igamma γ %idelta δ
%ivarepsilon ε %izeta ζ %ieta η %itheta θ
%iiota ι %ikappa κ %ilambda λ %imu μ
%inu ν %ixi ξ %iomicron ο %ipi π
%irho ρ %ivarsigma ς %isigma σ %itau τ
%iupsilon υ %ivarphi φ %ichi χ %ipsi ψ
%iomega ω %ivartheta ϑ %iphi ϕ %ivarpi ϖ
%ivarrho ϱ %iepsilon ϵ

Special characters
Special characters are normally entered into a formula using the Symbols dialog (see “Symbols
dialog” on page 16 and “Catalog customization” on page 50 for more information). However, if
you know the name of the special character, you can type a percentage sign (%) followed by the
name of the special character into the Formula Editor. Table 16 Shows the full list of special
characters that are available in LibreOffice.

Appendix A, Commands Reference | 71

 Note
In localized versions of LibreOffice, the names of special characters are also
localized. If a document is not localized to the same language, then the names of
special characters in the following table may not work correctly. If this happens, you
can use the Symbols dialog to select the required special character. When selected
in the Symbols dialog, the name of the special character is displayed at the bottom of
the Symbols dialog in the correct language.

Table 16: Special characters

%perthousand ‰ %tendto →
%noelement ∉ %infinite ∞
%angle ∢ %and ∧
%or ∨ %notequal ≠
%identical ≡ %strictlylessthan ≪
%strictlygreaterthan ≫

Reserved words
A reserved word is a word that is used by LibreOffice as a command in the Math markup
language and it cannot be used as a variable name or entered into a formula as text. However, if
you want to use a reserved word as text in a formula then you must place the reserved word
between double quotes.
For example, consider that you want to use the word “purple” in a formula and you do not want
the formula elements to be changed to the color purple. If you simply type A purple B in the
Formula Editor, the resulting formula is A ¿ B , which is incorrect and the error is shown by the
inverted question mark. To correct this error, type A "purple" B in the Formula Editor using
double quotes each side of the word purple and the resulting correct formula is A purple B .
If you want the word “purple” written in italic, as you would normally have with variables, you can
type A italic{ "purple" } B in the formula editor, which will result in A purple B .
The reserved words used in Math are listed in the above tables for commands in markup
language.

72 | LibreOffice 7.5 Math Guide

Math Guide
Using the formula editor
About this book:
Math is a simple formula editor that lets you lay out and display mathematical,
chemical, electrical, or scientific formulas quickly in standard written notation.
It is most commonly used in Writer for text documents, but it can also be used with
other types of documents or stand-alone.
If you have never used LibreOffice before, or you want an introduction to all of its
components, you might like to read the Getting Started Guide first.

About the authors:

This book was written by volunteers from the LibreOffice community. Profits from the
sales of the printed edition are used to benefit the community.
A PDF version of this book can be downloaded free from:
https://documentation.libreoffice.org/en/

About LibreOffice:
LibreOffice is the free, libre, and open source personal productivity suite from The
Documentation Foundation. It runs on Windows, macOS, and GNU/Linux. Support
and documentation is free from a large, dedicated community of users, contributors,
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Get involved as a volunteer and work in many areas: development, quality
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Download LibreOffice for free from:
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Work with certified LibreOffice professionals for any business needs, from
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