diff --git a/sphinxlint/checkers.py b/sphinxlint/checkers.py
index 05afe352d..59d9ccf2b 100644
--- a/sphinxlint/checkers.py
+++ b/sphinxlint/checkers.py
@@ -197,10 +197,16 @@ def check_missing_space_after_role(file, lines, options=None):
     Bad:  :exc:`Exception`s.
     Good: :exc:`Exceptions`\ s
     """
-    for lno, line in enumerate(lines, start=1):
-        line = clean_paragraph(line)
-        for role in _SUSPICIOUS_ROLE.finditer(line):
-            yield lno, f"role missing (escaped) space after role: {role.group(0)!r}"
+    for paragraph_lno, paragraph in paragraphs(lines):
+        if paragraph.count("|") > 4:
+            continue  # we don't handle tables yet.
+        paragraph = clean_paragraph(paragraph)
+        for role in _SUSPICIOUS_ROLE.finditer(paragraph):
+            error_offset = paragraph[: role.start()].count("\n")
+            yield (
+                paragraph_lno + error_offset,
+                f"role missing (escaped) space after role: {role.group(0)!r}",
+            )
 
 
 @checker(".rst", ".po")
diff --git a/tests/fixtures/xpass/multiline-role-in-table.rst b/tests/fixtures/xpass/multiline-role-in-table.rst
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..cfdcb512f
--- /dev/null
+++ b/tests/fixtures/xpass/multiline-role-in-table.rst
@@ -0,0 +1,11 @@
+Math in Table
+=============
+
++-----------+---------------+---------------+
+| Shape     | Area          | Perimeter     |
++===========+===============+===============+
+| Circle    | :math:`\pi    | :math:`2 \pi  |
+|           | r^2`          | r`            |
++-----------+---------------+---------------+
+| Square    | :math:`w^2`   | :math:`4w`    |
++-----------+---------------+---------------+