Apply Tate‑chu‑yoko in vertical text

Last updated on Jun 2, 2026

Learn how to rotate half-width characters horizontally within vertical text frames for better readability in Adobe InDesign.

Tate-chu-yoko (also called Kumimoji or Renmoji) rotates selected characters to horizontal orientation within vertical text. This formatting improves readability for numbers, dates, and short foreign words that would otherwise display vertically one character at a time.

Use Tate-chu-yoko when working with vertical text frames containing half-width characters, such as 123 or Jan, that need horizontal display. For single full-width characters or longer text strings, standard vertical formatting typically provides better results.

Apply Tate-chu-yoko to selected text

Select the half-width characters you want to rotate horizontally within the vertical text frame.

Select Type > Character.

Select the panel menu icon, then select Tate-chu-yoko. The selected characters now display horizontally within your vertical text flow.

For precise position control, select the panel menu icon, then select Tate-chu-yoko Settings to adjust X Offset (vertical position) or Y Offset (horizontal position).

Set automatic Tate-chu-yoko for paragraphs

Select the text or place the insertion point in the target paragraph.

Select Type > Paragraph.

Select panel menu icon, then select Auto Tate-chu-yoko.

Enter the maximum number of consecutive half-width characters to rotate in Numbers.

Select Include Roman Characters if you want to rotate Latin text automatically, then select OK. Setting Numbers to 2 rotates two-digit numbers like 12 but leaves three-digit numbers like 123 in vertical orientation.

Adjust the Numbers value based on your typical content patterns.

Note

If multiple Tate-chu-yoko groups appear next to each other (for example, a two-digit number and a two-character alphanumeric string such as 24km), use the Non-joiner character to keep them separate. Select Type > Insert Special Character > Other > Non-joiner (結合なし).

Remove Tate-chu-yoko formatting

Select the affected text

Select Type > Character.

Select panel menu icon, then deselect Tate-chu-yoko.

Clear auto Tate-chu-yoko

Select the affected text

Select Type > Paragraph.

Select panel menu icon, then deselect Auto Tate-chu-yoko.

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