Basic Drawing Commands

1. LINE (Shortcut: L)
○ Draws a straight line segment between two points. The LINE command is
foundational, used to create walls, boundaries, and details in architectural and
engineering drawings.
2. PLINE (Shortcut: PL)
○ Creates a polyline, a continuous line composed of connected segments. Useful
for drawing complex shapes, paths, and objects that require manipulation as a
single entity.
3. CIRCLE (Shortcut: C)
○ Draws a circle by specifying a center point and radius or diameter. Commonly
used to represent circular elements like columns, pipes, and fasteners.
4. ARC (Shortcut: A)
○ Draws an arc, which is a curved line defined by three points (start, center, end) or
a start angle and radius. Used for circular details and rounded corners.
5. RECTANGLE (Shortcut: REC)
○ Creates a rectangle by specifying two opposite corners. Ideal for quickly drafting
rooms, furniture outlines, and structural components.
6. ELLIPSE (Shortcut: EL)
○ Draws an ellipse (oval) by defining the major and minor axes. Useful for drawing
elliptical windows or elements with non-circular curves.
7. POLYGON (Shortcut: POL)
○ Creates a closed shape with a specified number of equal-length sides. Use this
for regular polygons like hexagons and pentagons (e.g., bolt heads, floor
patterns).
8. SPLINE (Shortcut: SPL)
○ Draws a smooth curve passing through specified points. Ideal for creating
organic, flowing shapes or paths.

Modify Commands

1. MOVE (Shortcut: M)
○ Moves selected objects from one point to another. Useful for repositioning
elements within a drawing.
2. COPY (Shortcut: CO or CP)
○ Duplicates selected objects, often used for repeating elements like windows,
fixtures, or structural members.
3. ROTATE (Shortcut: RO)
○ Rotates selected objects around a specified base point. Use for adjusting the
orientation of objects.
 4. MIRROR (Shortcut: MI)
○ Creates a mirrored copy of selected objects across a defined axis. Useful for
symmetrical layouts or duplicating repetitive components.
5. OFFSET (Shortcut: O)
○ Creates a parallel line or shape at a specified distance from the original. Used to
create walls, borders, or paths with consistent spacing.
6. TRIM (Shortcut: TR)
○ Trims objects to intersecting boundaries, removing excess parts. Essential for
cleaning up intersections or adjusting shapes.
7. EXTEND (Shortcut: EX)
○ Extends objects to meet other boundaries, filling gaps in lines or shapes.
8. SCALE (Shortcut: SC)
○ Scales objects by a specified factor. Useful for resizing drawings or adjusting to
specific proportions.
9. FILLET (Shortcut: F)
○ Rounds or fillets the edges of two intersecting objects to a specified radius. Often
used for joining corners smoothly in design.
10. CHAMFER (Shortcut: CHA)
● Creates a beveled edge between two lines, useful for sharp edge details in mechanical
or architectural drawings.
11. EXPLODE (Shortcut: X)
● Breaks a complex object (like a block or polyline) into individual components. Essential
for editing individual parts of a group.

Annotation and Dimensioning Commands

1. TEXT (Shortcut: T)
○ Adds single-line text annotations to drawings. Used for labeling and basic notes.
2. MTEXT (Shortcut: MT)
○ Creates multiline text with advanced formatting options. Useful for detailed notes
or descriptions.
3. DIM (Shortcut: D)
○ Opens the dimension tool to add various types of measurements. Includes linear,
aligned, radial, and angular dimensions.
4. DIMALIGNED (Shortcut: DAL)
○ Adds dimensions aligned along the length of an object, useful for angled
elements.
5. DIMLINEAR (Shortcut: DLI)
○ Adds horizontal or vertical dimensions for walls, rooms, and components.
6. DIMRADIUS (Shortcut: DIMRAD)
○ Measures the radius of circular objects. Commonly used for pipes, round
columns, and circular details.
 7. LEADER (Shortcut: LE)
○ Draws a line with an arrow and text at the end, commonly used for callouts or
directional notes.
8. MLEADER (Shortcut: MLEAD)
○ Creates a multileader with various options for leader line styles and annotations.
9. HATCH (Shortcut: H)
○ Fills closed areas with a pattern or solid color. Used for adding texture, material
symbols, or shading.

Layer Management Commands

1. LAYER (Shortcut: LA)

○ Opens the Layer Manager to create, modify, and manage layers. Critical for
organizing and categorizing drawing elements.
2. LAYER OFF / LAYER ON
○ Turns layers off or on, hiding or displaying specific parts of a drawing.
3. LAYER FREEZE / LAYER THAW
○ Temporarily hides or displays layers without deleting them. Freezing can improve
performance in large drawings.
4. LAYER LOCK / LAYER UNLOCK
○ Locks or unlocks layers to prevent or allow modifications, maintaining control
over parts of the drawing.

Object Selection and Snap Commands

1. SELECT
○ Allows various selection methods, like window or crossing selection, to choose
objects for modification.
2. OSNAP (Object Snap, Shortcut: F3 to toggle)
○ Provides snapping options (e.g., endpoints, midpoints, centers) to enhance
accuracy when drawing or modifying objects.
3. ORTHO (Shortcut: F8)
○ Restricts cursor movement to horizontal or vertical directions, helping in
straight-line drafting.
4. POLAR (Shortcut: F10)
○ Enables polar tracking to snap along preset angles, useful for consistent
alignment at angles like 30°, 45°, or 90°.
5. GRID and SNAP (Shortcut: F9 for Snap)
○ Displays a grid and allows snapping to grid points for drawing accuracy.
View and Navigation Commands

1. ZOOM (Shortcut: Z)
○ Adjusts the view magnification, allowing you to zoom in or out for better visibility
and detail.
2. PAN (Shortcut: Hold Spacebar or use P)
○ Moves the view without changing the zoom level, useful for navigating large
drawings.
3. VIEW
○ Saves and restores named views within the drawing, allowing quick switching
between viewpoints.
4. UCS (User Coordinate System)
○ Adjusts the coordinate system to a custom orientation, helpful for working in
rotated views.
5. PLAN
○ Sets the view to the plan (top) view of the current UCS, quickly returning you to
the primary layout view.

Block and Reference Commands

1. BLOCK (Shortcut: B)
○ Creates a reusable block from selected objects, improving efficiency for repetitive
elements.
2. INSERT (Shortcut: I)
○ Places a block or external DWG file into the drawing, supporting modular design.
3. WBLOCK
○ Writes selected objects or blocks to an external DWG file, useful for exporting
parts of a drawing.
4. XREF
○ Attaches an external reference (Xref) to a drawing for collaborative or
multi-disciplinary work.
5. ATTDEF and ATTEDIT
○ ATTDEF creates attributes in blocks for adding metadata, while ATTEDIT edits
those attributes in the drawing.
Drawing Setup and Measurement Commands

1. UNITS
○ Sets drawing units, such as inches, feet, or millimeters, and precision level.
2. MEASURE (Shortcut: ME)
○ Measures distance, radius, angle, or area in a drawing.
3. DIST (Shortcut: DI)
○ Measures the distance between two points, useful for verifying dimensions.
4. AREA (Shortcut: AA)
○ Calculates the area and perimeter of closed shapes, helping verify space and
volume calculations.

Display and Layout Commands

1. LAYOUT
○ Manages layout tabs, allowing for printing setups and managing multiple views of
the drawing.
2. VIEWPORT (Shortcut: MV)
○ Creates and manages viewports in a layout, defining visible areas in the paper
space.
3. SCALEVIEW
○ Sets the scale of a view within a viewport, essential for accurate printing and
presentation.

File and Data Management Commands

1. SAVE / SAVEAS (Shortcut: Ctrl+S and Ctrl+Shift+S)

○ Saves the drawing, either with the current or a new name.
2. EXPORT
○ Exports the drawing to other formats, like PDF or DWF, for sharing or
presentation.
3. PLOT (Shortcut: Ctrl+P)
○ Prints or plots the drawing, allowing for hard copy or digital PDF outputs.
4. PURGE
○ Removes unused elements like layers or blocks, cleaning and reducing file size.
5. AUDIT
○ Checks for drawing errors, helping maintain a clean file.
6. RECOVER
○ Recovers a drawing file after a crash or corruption, useful in emergencies.
Advanced Commands for Efficiency

1. ARRAY (Shortcut: AR)

○ Creates a rectangular or polar array of objects, useful for patterns or regularly
spaced elements.
2. MATCHPROP (Shortcut: MA)
○ Matches the properties of one object to another, ensuring consistent styling.
3. GROUP (Shortcut: G)
○ Groups objects together for unified manipulation, useful for managing complex
assemblies.
4. DIMSTYLE (Shortcut: D)
○ Manages dimension styles for consistent appearance of measurements across
the drawing.
5. TEXTSTYLE (Shortcut: ST)
○ Manages text styles for uniform text appearance.
6. LAYERSTATE
○ Saves and restores layer configurations, useful for switching between layer
setups.