Move, align, group, and layer objects

Every picture, text box, shape, and line on a page is an object. This topic shows how to select, move, resize, and layer objects.

Select objects

• Click an object. To select a text box, click inside it and then press Esc.
• Hold Shift and click to add an object to the selection, or to remove it.
• Drag a box around objects on an empty part of the page. Objects that fit completely inside the box are selected.
• Press Ctrl+A to select every object on the page. Press Tab to step to the next object.
• Home > Editing > Select can select all the text boxes, pictures, shapes, tables, or Text Art at once.

Move and resize

• Drag an object to move it. Hold Shift to move it only straight across or straight up and down. Hold Alt to turn snapping off. Hold Ctrl while you drag to make a copy.
• Press the arrow keys to nudge the object by one eighth of an inch. Alt with an arrow key moves it one screen pixel. You can change the nudge distance in File > Options > Advanced.
• Drag a square handle to resize. A corner handle changes width and height together. A side handle changes only one.
• Text boxes and shapes: hold Shift while you drag a corner to keep the proportions.
• Pictures, Text Art, icons, and groups already keep their proportions at a corner. Hold Shift to stretch them freely.
• Hold Ctrl to resize from the center.
• For exact numbers, type in the Height and Width boxes of the Size group (on tabs such as Shape Format), or right-click the object, choose Format Object…, and use the Size and Layout tabs. View > Tools > Measurement opens a small window that shows and sets position, size, and rotation.

Rotate and flip

Drag the round green handle above a selected object. Hold Shift to turn in 15-degree steps. Or click Home > Arrange > Rotate and choose Rotate Right 90°, Rotate Left 90°, Flip Vertical, Flip Horizontal, or More Rotation Options… to type an angle.

Align and distribute

1. Select the objects.
2. Click Home > Arrange > Align.
3. Choose Align Left, Center, Right, Top, Middle, or Bottom.

With several objects selected, they line up with each other. With one object selected, it lines up with the page edges. Check Relative to Margin Guides in the same menu to use the margin guides instead.

Distribute Horizontally and Distribute Vertically space three or more objects evenly between the outer two.

Group objects

A group moves, resizes, and turns as one object.

1. Select two or more objects.
2. Click Home > Arrange > Group (Ctrl+Shift+G).

To take a group apart, select it and click Ungroup. The arrow beside Ungroup offers Regroup, which puts the last group back together. To select one object inside a group, double-click it. Press Esc to select the whole group again.

Change the stacking order

Objects stack like sheets of paper. Use Bring Forward and Send Backward to move an object one step. The arrow beside each button offers Bring to Front (Alt+F6) and Send to Back (Alt+Shift+F6). Right-click and choose Order for the same choices.

List the objects in the Selection Pane

Arrange > Selection Pane opens a list of every object on the page, with the one in front first. It helps when objects hide each other.

• Click a name to select that object.
• Double-click a name, or press F2, to type a new name for the object. An object with no name of its own shows its kind and its number, such as Shape 2.
• Clear the box beside a name to hide the object. A hidden object is not drawn on the page, in a printout, or in a PDF, and a click on the page does not pick it. Check the box to show it again. Show All and Hide All set every box at once.
• Select a name and click Bring Forward or Send Backward to move the object one place in the list, or drag a name up or down.

Every one of these is a step you can undo. A name and a hidden mark are saved in a .jpub file. A .pub file has no place for them.

Lock an object

Right-click an object and choose Lock Position and Size. It cannot be moved or resized, and its handles turn into red X marks. Choose it again to unlock.

Related

• Wrap text around objects
• Rulers, guides, and snapping
• The Shape Format tab