UK TeX FAQ -- question label flushboth

### Cancelling `\``ragged` commands

LaTeX provides commands `\``raggedright` and `\``raggedleft`, but none to cancel their effect. The `\``centering` command is implemented in the same way as the `\``ragged*` commands, and suffers in the same way.

The following code (to be inserted in a package of your own, or as internal LaTeX code) defines a command that restores flush justification at both margins:

    \def\flushboth{%
      \let\\\@normalcr
      \@rightskip\z@skip \rightskip\@rightskip
      \leftskip\z@skip
      \parindent 1.5em\relax}

There’s a problem with the setting of `\``parindent` in the code: it’s necessary because both the `\``ragged` commands set `\``parindent` to zero, but the setting isn’t a constant of nature: documents using a standard LaTeX class with `twocolumn` option will have `1.0em` by default, and there’s no knowing what you (or some other class) will have done.

Any but a really old copy of Martin Schröder’s ragged2e package has a `\``justifying` command to match its versions of the LaTeX ‘ragged’ commands. The package also provides a `justify` environment, which permits areas of justified text in a larger area which is ragged.

`ragged2e.sty`
  Distributed as part of macros/latex/contrib/ms (or browse the directory)

This question on the Web: http://www.tex.ac.uk/cgi-bin/texfaq2html?label=flushboth