Draw Guide 7.3

Chapter 2,
Drawing Basic Shapes

CopyrightThis document is Copyright © 2022 by the LibreOffice Documentation Team. Contributors arelisted below. This document maybe distributed and/or modified under the terms of either the GNU
General Public License (https://www.gnu.org/licenses/gpl.html), version 3 or later, or the Creative
Commons Attribution License (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), version 4.0 or later.
All trademarks within this guide belong to their legitimate owners.

Contributors
To this edition.
Peter Schofield

Kees Kriek

To previous editions.
John Cleland
John A Smith
Regina HenschelMartin Fox
Peter SchofieldElzett Kotze

Jean Hollis Weber
Claire Wood

Feedback
Please direct any comments or suggestions about this document to the Documentation Team’s
mailing list: documentation@global.libreoffice.org

Note
Everything sent to a mailing list, including email addresses and any other personal
information that is written in the message, is publicly archived and cannot be deleted.

Publication date and software version
Published May 2022. Based on LibreOffice 7.3 Community.
Other versions of LibreOffice may differ in appearance and functionality.

Using LibreOffice on macOS
Some keystrokes and menu items are different on macOS from those used in Windows andLinux. The table below gives some common substitutions for the instructions in this document.
For a detailed list, see the application Help.
Windows or LinuxmacOS equivalent

EffectTools > Options on
Menu barLibreOffice > Preferenceson Menu bar

Access to setup options

Right-click

Ctrl+click and/or right-click
depending on computer setup

Opens a context menu

Ctrl or Control⌘ and/or Cmd or Command,
depending on keyboard

Used with other keys

Alt

⌥ and/or Alt or Option
depending on keyboard

Used with other keys

F11

⌘+T

Open the Styles deck in the Sidebar

Documentation for LibreOffice is available at https://documentation.libreoffice.org/en/Contents
Copyright............................................................................................................................2
Contributors.............................................................................................................................. 2
Feedback.................................................................................................................................. 2
Publication date and software version.......................................................................................2
Using LibreOffice on macOS.....................................................................................................2

Introduction........................................................................................................................4
Drawing basic shapes.......................................................................................................4
Straight lines............................................................................................................................. 4
Creating straight lines...........................................................................................................4
Formatting straight lines.......................................................................................................6
Lines and arrows....................................................................................................................... 7
Creating lines or arrows........................................................................................................7
Formatting line or arrow........................................................................................................8
Rectangles or squares..............................................................................................................9
Ellipses or circles.....................................................................................................................11
Dimension lines....................................................................................................................... 12
Inserting dimension lines....................................................................................................12Arcs and segments................................................................................................................. 13
Curves, polygons or freeform lines..........................................................................................13
Curves................................................................................................................................ 13
Polygons............................................................................................................................ 14
Polygons 45°...................................................................................................................... 14
Freeform lines.................................................................................................................... 14

Glue points and connectors...........................................................................................14
Glue points.............................................................................................................................. 14
Connectors.............................................................................................................................. 15

Drawing geometric shapes.............................................................................................16
Basic shapes........................................................................................................................... 16
Symbol shapes....................................................................................................................... 17
Block arrows........................................................................................................................... 17
Flowcharts............................................................................................................................... 17
Callouts................................................................................................................................... 17
Stars and banners................................................................................................................... 17
3D Objects.............................................................................................................................. 18

Adding, inserting and formatting text...........................................................................18

Chapter 2, Drawing Basic Shapes | 3

Introduction
LibreOffice Draw can create 2D and 3D objects. This chapter shows how to draw simple 2D
objects. The following chapters describe how to work with and edit such objects. For more
information on 3D objects, see Chapter 7, Working with 3D Objects.
All shapes, such as lines, rectangles, or more complicated shapes, are called objects. This iscommon notation in vector drawing software.
The most commonly used drawing tools are found on the Drawing toolbar (Figure 1) and thistoolbar is normally docked on the left side of the main Draw window. If the toolbar is not visible,
go to View > Toolbars on the Menu bar and select Drawing from the available options.
As with all the components of LibreOffice, the Drawing toolbar can be unlocked and placed theDraw workspace as a floating toolbar. Toolbars can be configured by adding, moving, hiding, ordeleting tools. See Chapter 1, Introducing Draw for more information.
When a shape is drawn, an object selected for editing, or text added to the drawing, theinformation field in the Status Bar (Figure 2) changes to reflect the action taken or in progress.
See Chapter 1, Introducing Draw for more information on the Status Bar.

Figure 1: Drawing toolbar

Figure 2: Status Bar

Drawing basic shapes
Basic shapes, including text, are treated as objects in Draw. The default set of tools available fordrawing basic shapes on the Drawing toolbar are shown in Figure 1. To add more tools to the
Drawing toolbar, see Appendix B, Toolbars and the Getting Started Guide for more information.
Some tool icons on the Drawing toolbar change shape according to the last tool used from theselection of available tools. Each tool that has a triangle ▼ next to the tool icon indicates that
more tools are available. See “Drawing geometric shapes” on page 16 for information on theavailable shapes.

Note
When a basic shape is drawn, or one selected for editing, the information area at theleft side in the status bar changes to reflect the present action. For example Linecreated, Text frame xxyy selected, and so on.

Straight lines
Creating straight lines
A straight line is the simplest element or object in Draw to create.
1) Use one of the following options to draw a straight line:– Click Insert Line on the Drawing toolbar.

4 | Chapter 2, Drawing Basic Shapes

– Click on the triangle ▼ next to Lines and Arrows on the Drawing toolbar and selectInsert Line from the options available.
– Click Insert Line in the Line and Arrows panel of the Shapes deck on the Sidebar(Figure 3).
2) Place the cursor at the starting point on the drawing, then click and drag the cursor to
draw a straight line.
3) Release when the end point is reached and a straight line is created.

Note
A selection handle appears at each end of the line, showing that this object is thecurrently selected object. The selection handle at the starting point of the line isslightly larger than the selection handle at the end point, as shown in Figure 4.

Figure 3: Lines and Arrows panel in Shapes deckon sidebar

Figure 4: Line starting point

Drawing basic shapes | 5

Note
To snap the end of a straight line to the nearest grid point, keep the Ctrl (macOS ⌘)key pressed while drawing the straight line. This is the default behaviour of the Ctrl
(macOS ⌘) key. If the option Snap to Grid on View > Snap Guides on the Menu
bar has been selected, pressing the Ctrl (macOS ⌘) key while drawing a straight line
temporarily deactivates the Snap to Grid option.

Note
To restrict the drawing angle of a straight line to a multiple of 45 degrees (0, 45, 90,
135, and so on), keep the Shift key pressed while drawing a straight line. If the option
When creating or moving objects in the Constrain Objects section of Tools >Options > LibreOffice Draw > Grid (macOS LibreOffice > Preferences >LibreOffice Draw > Grid) has been selected, pressing the Shift key temporarily
deactivates this restriction.

Note
To draw a straight line symmetrically outwards in both directions from the start point,
keep the Alt (macOS ⌥) key pressed while drawing the straight line. This draws
straight lines from the middle of the straight line.

Formatting straight lines
When a straight line is drawn, it uses default attributes. To change any of these attributes to thedrawing requirements, select the straight line by clicking on it to display the selection handles anduse one of the following methods to format the selected straight line:•

Open the Line panel in the Properties deck on the Sidebar (Figure 5).

•

Use the tools Line Style, Line Width, and Line Color on the Line and Filling toolbar(Figure 6).

•

Go to Format > Line on the Menu bar to open the Line dialog (Figure 7).

•

Right-click and select Line from the submenu to open the Line dialog.

Figure 5: Line panel in Properties deck on
Sidebar6 | Chapter 2, Drawing Basic Shapes

Figure 6: Line and Filling toolbar

Figure 7: Line dialog - Line pageLines and arrows
Draw classifies both lines and arrows as lines and are drawn like straight lines (for more
information, see “Straight lines” on page 4). Hovering the cursor over each tool in the Lines andArrows sub-toolbar, or the Line and Arrows panel in the Shapes deck on the Sidebar, indicateswhat type of line or arrow each tool draws. The information field on the Status Bar shows them
only as lines.

Creating lines or arrows
The tools available on the Lines and Arrows sub-toolbar (Figure 8) for creating lines or arrows
are, from left to right:
Insert Line
Line Ends with Arrow
Line with Circle/Arrow
Line with Square/Arrow

Line with Arrows
Line Starts with Arrow
Line with Arrow/Circle
Line with Arrow/Square

Dimension Line
Line (45º)

Drawing basic shapes | 7

Figure 8: Lines and Arrows sub-toolbar

Note
The tool icon for the last tool used is already selected on the Drawing toolbar. This
makes it easier to use the same tool again.
1) Use one of the following methods to draw a line or arrow:– Click on the triangle ▼ next to Lines and Arrows on the Drawing toolbar and selectthe type of line or arrow required on the Lines and Arrows sub-toolbar (Figure 8).
– Select the type of line or arrow required in the Lines and Arrows panel of the Shapes
deck on the Sidebar (Figure 3 on page 5).
2) Place the cursor at the starting point for the line or arrow, then click and drag the cursor.
The arrowhead(s) is drawn at the end(s) of the line when the line is completed.
3) For more information on how to draw lines and arrows, see “Straight lines” on page 4.

Formatting line or arrow
After drawing a line or arrow, make sure it is selected and format the line or arrow to the drawing
requirements using one of the following methods:
1) To format the line used for an arrow, see “Straight lines” on page 4 for more information.
2) To format an arrow using the same arrowhead style for both ends of the arrow:a) Select the arrow so that the selection handles are displayed.

Figure 9: Line dialog - Arrow Styles page
8 | Chapter 2, Drawing Basic Shapes

Figure 10: Arrowhead styles in Line panel in
Properties deck on Sidebarb) Go to Format > Line on the Menu bar or right-click on the arrow to open the Linedialog.
c) Click on Arrow Styles to open the Arrow Styles page (Figure 9).
d) Select an arrow style from the options available in the Arrow style drop-down list.
e) Click OK to apply the arrow style and close the Line dialog.
f) Click in an empty space on the drawing to deselect the arrow.
3) To format an arrow using different arrowhead styles for each end of the arrow:a) Select the arrow so that the selection handles are displayed.
b) Open the Line panel on the Properties deck of the Sidebar (Figure 10).
c) In Line, click on Arrow Style to open the drop-down list for arrowhead stylesd) Select an arrowhead style from the left-hand list of arrowhead styles for the start pointof the arrow.
e) Select an arrowhead style from the right-hand list of arrowhead styles for the end
point of the arrow.
f) Click in an empty space on the drawing to deselect the arrow.

Rectangles or squares
1) Use one of the following methods to start drawing a rectangle or square:– Click on Rectangle on the Drawing toolbar.
– Select the type of rectangle or square in the Basic Shapes panel in the Shapes deckon the Sidebar (Figure 11).
Drawing basic shapes | 9

– Click on the triangle ▼ next to Basic Shapes on the Drawing toolbar and select thetype of rectangle or square required from the drop-down list.
– Select the type of rectangle or square on the Legacy Rectangles toolbar (Figure 12).
To display the Legacy Rectangles toolbar, go to View > Toolbars on the Menu bar
and select it.
2) Place the cursor at the starting point for the rectangle or square, then click and drag the
cursor until the required size is drawn. The rectangle or square is drawn from the starting
point using the bottom right corner as the anchor point.
3) If a rectangle option is selected, hold down the Shift key while dragging the cursor to draw
a square.
4) If a rectangle option is selected, hold down the Alt key while dragging the cursor to draw a
rectangle from its center.
5) If a rectangle option is selected, hold down the Shift and Alt keys while dragging the
cursor to draw a square from its center.
6) If a square option is selected, hold down the Alt key while dragging the cursor to draw asquare from its center.

Figure 11: Shapes deck on Sidebar

Figure 12: Legacy Rectangles
toolbar10 | Chapter 2, Drawing Basic Shapes

Note
If the option When creating or moving objects has been selected in the Constrain
Object section of Tools > Options > LibreOffice Draw > Grid, the action of the
Shift key reversed. A square is drawn instead of a rectangle. To draw a rectangle,
hold down the Shift key. This reversal of the Shift key action also applies whendrawing ellipses, circles, arcs, and segments.

Ellipses or circles
1) Use one of the following methods to start drawing an ellipse or circle:– Click on Ellipse on the Drawing toolbar.
– Select the type of ellipse or circle in the Basic Shapes panel in the Shapes deck on
the Sidebar.
– Click on the triangle ▼ next to Basic Shapes on the Drawing toolbar and select thetype of ellipse or circle required from the drop-down list.
– Select the type of ellipse or circle on the Legacy Circles and Ovals toolbar (Figure 13).
To display the Legacy Circles and Ovals toolbar, go to View > Toolbars on the Menu
bar and select it.
2) Place the cursor at the starting point for the ellipse or circle, then click and drag the cursor
until the required size is drawn.
3) Place the cursor at the starting point for the ellipse or circle, then click and drag the cursor
until the required size is drawn. The ellipse or circle is drawn from the starting point using
the bottom right corner as the anchor point.
4) If an ellipse option is selected, hold down the Shift key while dragging the cursor to draw
a circle.
5) If an ellipse option is selected, hold down the Alt key while dragging the cursor to draw anellipse from its center.
6) If an ellipse option is selected, hold down the Shift and Alt keys while dragging the cursor
to draw a circle from its center.
7) If a circle option is selected, hold down the Alt key while dragging the cursor to draw acircle from its center.

Figure 13: Legacy Circles and Ovals toolbar

Tip
To quickly insert a line, rectangle, ellipse, or text, press and hold down the Ctrl
(macOS ⌘) key and then click on Line, Rectangle, Ellipse, or Text and a standard
sized object is drawn automatically in the Workspace. The size, shape, and color are
all standard values. These attributes can be changed later, if desired. See Chapter 4,
Changing Object Attributes for more information.

Drawing basic shapes | 11

Figure 14: Dimension lines on an object

Figure 15: Dimension Line dialog

Dimension lines
Dimension lines display a measurement of an object in the drawing (Figure 14). The dimension
line does not belong to the object itself, but is positioned close to it. An object can have as many
dimension lines as necessary to indicate the size of its sides, edges, and distances.
To format the display of a dimension line and its components, right-click on the dimension line
and selecting Dimensions from the context menu to open the Dimension line dialog (Figure 15).

Inserting dimension lines
1) Use one of the following options to start drawing a dimension line:– Click on the triangle ▼ next to Lines and Arrows on the Drawing toolbar and selectDimension Line from the drop-down list.
12 | Chapter 2, Drawing Basic Shapes

– Click on Dimension Line in the Lines and Arrows panel of the Shapes deck on the
Sidebar.
2) Place the cursor at the point close to the object to position the start of the dimension line.
3) Click and drag to draw the dimension line. As the dimension line is drawn, the dimension
is displayed and automatically calculated.
4) Select the dimension line, then right-click on the dimension line and select Dimensions
from the context menu to open the Dimension Line dialog.
5) Format the dimension line using the options available the. For more information
dimension line options, see Chapter 11, Advanced Draw Techniques.
6) Click OK to save the changes and close the Dimension Line dialog.
7) Click in an empty space on the drawing to deselect the dimension line.

Note
The measurement units used for dimension lines can be changed by going to Tools> Options > LibreOffice Draw > Grid on the Menu bar and select a measurement
unit from the available options in the Units of measurement drop-down list.

Arcs and segments
1) Use one of the following methods to start drawing an arc or segment (partial circles or
ellipses):– Select the type of arc or segment in the Basic Shapes panel in the Shapes deck on
the Sidebar.
– Click on the triangle ▼ next to Basic Shapes on the Drawing toolbar and select thetype of arc or segment required from the drop-down list.
– Select the type of arc or segment from the Legacy Circles and Ovals toolbar. To
display the Legacy Circles and Ovals toolbar, go to View > Toolbars on the Menu bar
and select it.
2) Click, hold and drag the cursor to start creating an arc or segment. Release when therequired object size is reached.
3) Move the cursor to the position where the arc or segment starts and click to start drawing
the arc or segment. The Status Bar indicates the angle in degrees.
4) Move the cursor to the end position of where the arc or segment finishes. The Status Bar
shows the angle in degrees.
5) Click again to complete the arc or segment.

Curves, polygons or freeform lines
Select the required tool for drawing curves, polygons, or freeform lines using one of the following
methods:•

Click on the triangle ▼ next to Curves and Polygons on the Drawing toolbar and selectthe type of curve, polygon or freeform line from the drop-down list.

•

Select the type of curve, polygon or freeform line in the Curve and Polygons panel ofthe Shapes deck on the Sidebar.

Curves1) Click, hold and drag the cursor from the starting point to draw a line.
2) Release and continue to drag the cursor to bend the line into the required curve shape.

Drawing basic shapes | 13

3) Click to set the end point of the curve and position the curve on the drawing.
4) Continue dragging the cursor to draw straight lines at the end of the curve. Each click
sets a corner point and allows drawing of another straight line from each corner point.
5) Double-click to end the drawing of a curve and straight lines.

Note
A filled curve automatically joins the last point to the first point to close off the object
and fills it with the selected fill. A curve without filling is not closed at the end of thedrawing.

Polygons
1) Click, hold and drag the cursor to draw a line between the first and second corner points.
2) Click again to end the drawing between the first and second corner points of the polygon.
3) Move the cursor to draw the next line and click to finish drawing to the next corner point.
Each click sets a corner point and draws another line.
4) Double-click to end the drawing of a polygon.

Note
A filled polygon automatically joins the last corner point to the first corner point toclose off the figure and fills it with the selected fill. A polygon without filling is not
closed at the end of the drawing.

Polygons 45°
Like ordinary polygons, these are formed from lines, but the angles between lines are restricted
to 45 or 90 degrees. If required, hold down the Shift key as the line is drawn so that the line isdrawn at an angle other than 45 or 90 degrees.

Freeform lines
Using freeform line tools is similar to drawing with a pencil on paper.
1) Click, hold and drag the cursor to the line shape required, then release to complete thedrawing of the freeform line.
2) If Freeform Line Filled is selected, the end point is joined automatically to the start point
and the object is filled with the selected fill.

Note
The points in curves, polygons and freeform lines can be moved and edited. See
Chapter 3, Working with Objects and Chapter 11, Advanced Draw Techniques formore information.

Glue points and connectors
Glue points
All Draw objects have glue points, which are not normally displayed. Glue points become visible
when Connectors is selected on the Drawing toolbar or a connector tool is selected in theConnectors panel on the Shapes deck in the Sidebar.

14 | Chapter 2, Drawing Basic Shapes

Figure 16: Example of glue points on an
objectFigure 17: Glue Points toolbar

Figure 18: Example of a connector between two objects
Most objects have four glue points, as shown in the example in Figure 16. More glue points canbe added and customized using the Glue Points toolbar (Figure 17). Go to View > Toolbars >Glue Points on the Menu bar to open the toolbar.
Glue points are not the same as the selection handles of an object. Selection handles are formoving or changing the shape of an object. Glue points are used to fix or glue a connector to an
object so that when the object moves, the connector stays fixed to the object. For a more detailed
description on the use of glue points, see Chapter 3, Working with Objects and Object Points andChapter 8, Connections, Flowcharts, and Organization Charts.

Connectors
Connectors are lines or arrows whose ends automatically snap to a glue point of an object.
Connectors are not the same as lines and arrows. When objects are moved or reordered, theconnectors remain attached to a glue point. Figure 18 shows an example of two objects and aconnector.

Glue points and connectors | 15

Draw offers a range of different connectors and connector functions. On the Drawing toolbar,
click on the triangle ▼ next to Connectors and select a connector type from the drop-down list, or
select a connector from the Connectors panel in the Shapes deck on the Sidebar. For a moredetailed description of the use of connectors, see Chapter 8, Connections, Flowcharts, andOrganization Charts.

Drawing geometric shapes
The tools for drawing geometric shapes are located on the Drawing toolbar and on the Shapes
deck in the Sidebar. The use of these tools for geometric shapes is similar to the tools used fordrawing rectangles and squares, or ellipses and circles. For more information, see “Drawing
basic shapes” on page 4.
Clicking on the triangle ▼ to the right of a tool icon on the Drawing toolbar opens a drop-down list
giving access to the toolset for that shape. If necessary, this drop-down list can be “torn off” tocreate a floating sub-toolbar.
•

Click and hold on the dotted line at the top of the toolset, as shown in Figure 19, thendrag it across the screen to the Workspace and release to create a floating toolbar•

To close a floating toolbar, click on the X on the right of the toolbar title.

Figure 19: Creating floating toolbar

Note
The tool icons on the Drawing toolbar always indicate the last geometric shapedrawn and may not be the same as the tool icons shown on the Drawing toolbar inthis chapter. Indicating the last tool used makes it easier to use the same tool again.

Note
Text can be added to all of these geometric shapes. For more information, see
Chapter 11, Advanced Draw Techniques.

Basic shapes
Clicking on the triangle ▼ to the right of Basic Shapes on the Drawing toolbar opens the Basic
Shapes sub-toolbar (Figure 20). This sub-toolbar also includes rectangle and ellipse tools thatare identical to the ones already displayed on the Drawing toolbar. Alternatively, select therequired tool from the Basic Shapes panel in the Shapes deck on the Sidebar.

16 | Chapter 2, Drawing Basic Shapes

Figure 20: Basic Shapes sub-toolbar

Symbol shapes
Clicking on the triangle ▼ to the right of Symbol Shapes on the Drawing toolbar opens the
Symbol Shapes sub-toolbar (Figure 21). Alternatively, select the required tool from the Symbol
Shapes panel in the Shapes deck on the Sidebar.

Figure 21: Symbol Shapes sub-toolbar

Block arrows
Clicking on the triangle ▼ to the right of Block Arrows on the Drawing toolbar opens the Block
Arrows sub-toolbar (Figure 22). Alternatively, select the required tool from the Block Arrows
panel in the Shapes deck on the Sidebar.

Figure 22: Block Arrows sub-toolbar

Flowcharts
Clicking on the triangle ▼ to the right of Flowchart on the Drawing toolbar opens the Flowchart
sub-toolbar (Figure 23) for symbols. Alternatively, select the required tool from the Flowchart
panel in the Shapes deck on the Sidebar. The creation of flowcharts, organization charts, andsimilar planning tools are further described in Chapter 8 Connections, Flowcharts andOrganization Charts.

Figure 23: Flowchart sub-toolbar

Callouts
Clicking on the triangle ▼ to the right of Callout on the Drawing toolbar opens the Callouts
sub-toolbar (Figure 24). Alternatively, select the required tool from the Callouts panel in the
Shapes deck on the Sidebar.

Figure 24: Callouts
sub-toolbar

Stars and banners
Clicking on the triangle ▼ to the right of Stars and Banners on the Drawing toolbar opens theStars and Banners sub-toolbar (Figure 25). Alternatively, select the required tool from the Stars
and Banners panel in the Shapes deck on the Sidebar.
Drawing geometric shapes | 17

Figure 25: Stars and Banners sub-toolbar

3D Objects
Clicking on the triangle ▼ to the right of 3D Objects on the Drawing toolbar opens the
3D-Objects sub-toolbar (Figure 26). Alternatively, select the required tool from the 3D-Objects
panel in the Shapes deck on the Sidebar.

Figure 26: 3D-Objects sub-toolbar

Adding, inserting and formatting text
In Draw text can be added, inserted, and formatted to a drawing, objects, and shapes. For more
information on how to add, insert, and format text in a drawing or drawing objects, see Chapter 9,
Adding and Formatting Text.

18 | Chapter 2, Drawing Basic Shapes