Dictionary in Microsoft Word

Question

Does Microsoft Word have a mechanism to create a glossary (dictionary)?

Say, I would like to define a lot of therms, but want that Word automatically sorts them alphabetically, applies a style for defined therms etc.

I need also that the letters appears separately

A
aback - with the sail pressed backward against the mast by a headwind.
alive - having life; living; existing; not dead or lifeless.
almost - very nearly;

B
bastard - a person born of unmarried parents; an illegitimate child.
believe - to have confidence in the truth, the existence, or the reliability of something, although without absolute proof that one is right in doing so.
butcher - a retail or wholesale dealer in meat.
...

Z
Zurich - a canton in N Switzerland. 1,118,200; 668 sq. mi. (1730 sq. km).

(I use 2003, but if it is available in the latest releases I am curious to know).

Answer 1

I don't know of a built-in feature in Word 2003 (and don't have newer versions to hand at the moment to check), but you can utilise what I think is a little-known piece of functionality in Word that allows you to sort paragraphs alphabetically.

Please note, however, that any blank lines will all be sorted to the top of the list - you'll need to use some form of paragraph styling on the "header" letters to create gaps above them, etc.

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Let me demonstrate:

First, I've taken your example above, stuck them in an empty doc, mixed the definitions around and added a few extra "header" letters:

Next, I select all of the relevant text and then click Table - Sort on the menu bars. This presents me with the sort box (image below). It should already be setup as needed (check the image), so you can just hit OK.

And here's the end result, which I'm hoping is what you are after.