\item (LaTeX2e unofficial reference manual (November 2018))

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#### 8.16.1 `\item`: An entry in a list

Synopsis:

    \item text of item

or

    \item[optional-label] text of item

An entry in a list. The entries are prefixed by a label, whose default depends on the list type.

Because the optional label is surrounded by square brackets ‘`[...]`’, if you have an item whose text starts with ‘`[`’, you have to hide the bracket inside curly braces, as in: `\item {[} is an open square bracket`; otherwise, LaTeX will think it marks the start of an optional label.

Similarly, if the item does have the optional label and you need a close square bracket inside that label, you must hide it in the same way: `\item[Close square bracket, {]}]`. See LaTeX command syntax.

In this example the enumerate list has two items that use the default label and one that uses the optional label.

    \begin{enumerate}
      \item Moe
      \item[sometimes] Shemp
      \item Larry
    \end{enumerate}

The first item is labelled ‘`1.`’, the second item is labelled ‘`sometimes`’, and the third item is labelled ‘`2.`’. Because of the optional label in the second item, the third item is not labelled ‘`3.`’.

Unofficial LaTeX2e reference manual