In Microsoft Word, an entry like Article 'D1_footnote-1' suggests that the document has a broken or empty field code related to a note, rather than an actual footnote or endnote marker. That’s why a simple search for footnote or endnote markers doesn’t find it. Here’s how you can locate it:
1. Show Hidden Formatting / Field Codes
Press Alt + F9 (Windows) or Option + F9 (Mac) to toggle the display of field codes.
This will show hidden structural codes (like { FOOTNOTE }, { XE }, { REF }) in the body text.
{ REF D1_footnote-1 \h }or another field reference to "D1_footnote-1".
2. Search All Fields, Not Just Visible Text
Open Advanced Find (Ctrl + H → “Find” → “More” → “Special”).
Use Find what → ^d (that searches for any field).
Then step through each field until you locate one pointing to D1_footnote-1.
3. Inspect Footnote/Endnote Pane
Go to References → Show Notes.
This opens a pane with all footnotes and endnotes, including empty or broken ones.
Scroll through to see if one is “blank”—sometimes the numbering gets corrupted.
4. Use Navigation Pane with Wildcards
Open Navigation Pane (Ctrl + F).
Turn on wildcards in advanced find.
Search for D1_footnote-1 (even though not visible in text, it can appear in hidden XML).
5. Inspect with Draft View
Switch to Draft View (View → Draft).
Then go to References → Show Notes.
In Draft View, stray markers often appear more clearly in the notes area.
6. Check the XML directly (last resort)
If the above fails:
Save the .docx.
Rename it to .zip.
Extract the archive.
- Open
word/document.xml and search for "D1_footnote-1".This shows the exact element and where it’s referenced.
You can then fix it either by editing the XML or returning to Word and removing that anchor.
✅ Summary:
An “empty” article like D1_footnote-1 isn’t a normal footnote marker—it’s likely a dangling reference field. Use Alt+F9 to show fields, or search with ^d in Advanced Find. If not visible, inspect the document.xml inside the .docx.
