---
title: "AllowScriptLevelChange"
language: "en"
type: "Symbol"
summary: "AllowScriptLevelChange is an option for fractions and grids that controls whether certain operators, such as \\[Sum], \\[Product], and \\[Integral], always appear smaller than normal size."
keywords: 
- font size
- subscript size
canonical_url: "https://reference.wolfram.com/language/ref/AllowScriptLevelChange.html"
source: "Wolfram Language Documentation"
related_functions: 
  - 
    title: "ScriptLevel"
    link: "https://reference.wolfram.com/language/ref/ScriptLevel.en.md"
  - 
    title: "LimitsPositioning"
    link: "https://reference.wolfram.com/language/ref/LimitsPositioning.en.md"
---
# AllowScriptLevelChange

⚠ This function has not been fully integrated into the long-term Wolfram Language, and is subject to change.

AllowScriptLevelChange is an option for fractions and grids that controls whether certain operators, such as $\sum$, $\prod$, and $\int$, always appear smaller than normal size.

## Details

* A fraction can be created using ctrl+/ or [`Insert`](https://reference.wolfram.com/language/guide/InsertMenu.en.md) ▶ [`Typesetting`](https://reference.wolfram.com/language/ref/menuitem/Typesetting.en.md) ▶ Fraction.

* Certain formatting constructs change the level, or ``ScriptLevel``, at which a selection is displayed. For example, $b$ occurs at the second level of $a^b$ and has ``ScriptLevel -> 2``. By default, fractions also increment the ``ScriptLevel`` of the numerator and denominator; for example, each character in $\frac{a}{b}$ has ``ScriptLevel -> 2``. By default, grids also increment the ``ScriptLevel`` of their elements; for example, each character in |   |   |
| - | - |
| a | b |
| c | d | has ``ScriptLevel -> 2``.

* With the default setting ``AllowScriptLevelChange -> True``, ``ScriptLevel`` is incremented by 1 for the numerator and denominator for each entry in a grid. This means that operators affected by ``LimitsPositioning`` appear smaller than normal size, as shown here.

```wl
(∫f/1) ∫f

|                                |                              |
| ------------------------------ | ---------------------------- |
| Underoverscript[∑, j = 1, 100] | Underoverscript[∏, i = 1, n] |
| ∫ab                            | Underscript[\[Limit], n -> ∞]        |  Underoverscript[∑, j = 1, 100]
```

* With the setting ``AllowScriptLevelChange -> False``, ``ScriptLevel`` is not incremented for the numerator and denominator and grid entries; in other words, ``ScriptLevel`` for a selected part has the same value as it would outside the fraction or grid. With this setting, subexpressions within a fraction or grid can have a ``ScriptLevel`` of 0, which allows operators such as $\sum$, $\prod$, and $\int$ to appear at their normal size and formatting, as shown here.

```wl
(∫f/1) ∫f

|                                |                              |
| ------------------------------ | ---------------------------- |
| Underoverscript[∑, j = 1, 100] | Underoverscript[∏, i = 1, n] |
| ∫ab                            | Underscript[\[Limit], n -> ∞]        | Underoverscript[∑, j = 1, 100]
```

* For a selected fraction or grid, ``AllowScriptLevelChange`` is set as an option for ``FractionBox`` or ``GridBox`` and applies only to the selection.

* At the cell level, ``AllowScriptLevelChange`` is set as a suboption of the ``FractionBoxOptions`` or ``GridBoxOptions`` option for cells. It specifies the default setting of ``AllowScriptLevelChange`` for any fraction or grid in the cell.

## See Also

* [`ScriptLevel`](https://reference.wolfram.com/language/ref/ScriptLevel.en.md)
* [`LimitsPositioning`](https://reference.wolfram.com/language/ref/LimitsPositioning.en.md)

## History

* Introduced in 2000 (4.1)