Table of contents

A table of contents

A table of contents, usually headed simply "Contents" and abbreviated informally as TOC, The contents usually includes the titles or descriptions of the first-level headers, such as chapter titles in longer works, and often includes second-level or section titles (A-heads) within the chapters as well, and occasionally even third-level titles (subsections or B-heads). The depth of detail in tables of contents depends on the length of the work, with longer works having less. Formal reports (ten or more pages and being too long to put into a memo or letter) also have a table of contents. Within an English-language book, the table of contents usually appears after the title page, copyright notices, and, in technical journals, the abstract; and before any lists of tables or figures, the foreword, and the preface. Also, a table of contents is a part of a book or story usually in the back of the book that gives information on where to find what you are looking for.

Printed tables of contents indicate page numbers where each part starts, while digital ones offer links to go to each part. The format and location of the page numbers is a matter of style for the publisher. If the page numbers appear after the heading text, they might be preceded by characters called leaders, usually dots or periods, that run from the chapter or section titles on the opposite side of the page, or the page numbers might remain closer to the titles. In some cases, the page number appears before the text.

If a book or document contains chapters, articles, or stories by different authors, the author's name also usually appears in the table of contents.

In some cases, tables of contents contains a high quality description of the chapter's but usually first-level header's section content rather than subheadings.

Matter preceding the table of contents is generally not listed there. However, all pages except the outside cover are counted, and the table of contents is often numbered with a lowercase Roman numeral page number. Many popular word processors, such as Microsoft Word, WordPerfect, and StarWriter are capable of automatically generating a table of contents if the author of the text uses specific styles for chapter titles, headings, subheadings, etc.

There is one on this very page below.

Examples

Example with leaders:

Chapter 1: Getting Started . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
   Introduction  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
   Next Steps  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3

Example without leaders:

Chapter 1: Getting Started   1
   Introduction   2
   Next Steps   3

Example with authors:

1. Introduction to Biology  Arthur C. Smith   1
2. Microbiology  Susan Jones   10
3. Advances in Biotechnology  T.C. Chang   24

Example with descriptive text:

Chapter 1                                           3
   In which we first meet our hero and heroine, attend
   a gala feast, and begin an unexpected journey.

Chapter 2                                          12
   The journey takes an unusual turn, and new villains
    are discovered.

Earliest use

Pliny the Elder credits Quintus Valerius Soranus (d. 82 B.C.) as the first author to provide a table of contents to help readers navigate a lengthy work.^[1] Pliny's own table of contents for his encyclopedic Historia naturalis ("Natural History") may be viewed online in Latin and in English (following dedication).

References

• The Chicago Manual of Style (15th Edition)
• Gerald J. Alred, Charles T. Brusaw, Walter E. Oliu (2003). Handbook of Technical Writing. ISBN 0-312-30923-6. 

Notes