A title can look like a heading because it is large and bold while still being an ordinary paragraph. Word’s automatic table of contents uses document headings, so appearance alone is not enough to make an entry appear.

Start with one missing heading in a copy of the report. Check its style on the Home tab. Use the appropriate heading style for its place in the outline; for a main section, Microsoft’s basic example uses Heading 1. Avoid assigning every line the highest level merely to force it into the contents.

Confirm that the contents table is automatic

In desktop Word for Microsoft 365, Word 2024 or Word 2021, References, Table of Contents offers automatic styles. A manual table is typed content and will not rebuild itself from the headings. Establish which type you have before spending time refreshing it.

For an automatic table in Word for Windows, right-click it and choose Update Field. If the dialog offers page numbers only or the entire table, choose the entire table when headings have been added, renamed or reorganised. A page-number-only update does not add new entries.

Use three checks before issuing the report

Find the previously missing heading in the refreshed contents and compare its wording with the body. Check one heading that changed location, then one near the end of the document. These samples test different failure modes rather than repeatedly checking the first entry.

Do not type a correction directly over a generated entry as your main fix. It can hide an underlying style problem and leave the next update to undo your work.

Refresh again after the final layout changes and inspect the version you will distribute. If a required heading still does not appear, examine its outline level and the table’s configured levels instead of rebuilding the whole document. Keep the editable source alongside the issued copy.

References: Microsoft: automatic contents tables, Microsoft: updating fields.