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I found that I was irritated by the extra space after periods in my document, so I turned it off using \frenchspacing. However, I was surprised to find I missed the space a little. Without \frenchspacing my sentences are too far apart, but with it they feel a little bit cramped.

So, heretical as it may be, I would like to include a little extra space after a period, but not as much as the default. If possible, I'd like to be able to set a maximum, e.g. so that no matter how much it stretches, it can never be more than 1.5 times wider than a normal space. How can I achieve this?

N. Virgo
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  • @JoséCarlosSantos it's not the same. That question wants to have a normal space after a sentence-ending period, but a less-than-normal space after a non-sentence ending period. I don't want to change the spacing after non-sentence ending periods, I just want to change the spacing after a sentence ending period. (I want it to be more than a normal space, but less than the default.) – N. Virgo Oct 31 '19 at 08:01
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    However, it does look like Is it possible to have non-french spacing without extra stretch? might contain the answer. (Not quite the same question, but it has a very detailed answer that will probably allow me to figure it out. If my question doesn't get closed, I will post my own simple, digested answer here if so.) – N. Virgo Oct 31 '19 at 08:04
  • Can you give a minimal example? Do you use babel french or another package? – AndréC Oct 31 '19 at 08:29
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    @AndréC it's an English language document. ("French spacing" is just the term Knuth used for putting only a single space after a period.) Virtually any document containing more than one sentence will work as an example. – N. Virgo Oct 31 '19 at 11:22

1 Answers1

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Reduce the space factor code for the period; its default value is 3000. Make the comparison:

\documentclass{article}

\begin{document}

\bigskip

Sentence ending period. Period.
Another sentence, a bit longer.
Sentence ending period. Period.
Another sentence, a bit longer.
Sentence ending period. Period.
Another sentence, a bit longer.
Sentence ending period. Period.
Another sentence, a bit longer.

\sfcode`.=1500

Sentence ending period. Period.
Another sentence, a bit longer.
Sentence ending period. Period.
Another sentence, a bit longer.
Sentence ending period. Period.
Another sentence, a bit longer.
Sentence ending period. Period.
Another sentence, a bit longer.

\sfcode`.=1200

Sentence ending period. Period.
Another sentence, a bit longer.
Sentence ending period. Period.
Another sentence, a bit longer.
Sentence ending period. Period.
Another sentence, a bit longer.
Sentence ending period. Period.
Another sentence, a bit longer.

\end{document}

enter image description here

egreg
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