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How do I change the rotation of a rectangle in AutoCAD?

Published in AutoCAD Rotation 3 mins read

You can change the rotation of a rectangle in AutoCAD using the ROTATE command. Here's how:

Steps:

  1. Initiate the ROTATE command: You can do this in a few ways:

    • Type ROTATE (or the shortcut RO) in the command line and press Enter.
    • Find the "Rotate" icon, usually located under the "Modify" panel on the "Home" tab of the ribbon.

  2. Select the Rectangle: AutoCAD will prompt you to "Select objects." Click on the rectangle you want to rotate. Press Enter to finish the selection.

  3. Specify the Base Point: AutoCAD will now ask you to "Specify base point." Click on the point around which you want the rectangle to rotate. This is the pivot point. Think about where you want the rectangle to "swing" from. Common base points are corners or the center of the rectangle.

  4. Specify the Rotation Angle: You have a few options for specifying the rotation:

    • Enter an Angle: Type in the desired rotation angle in degrees and press Enter. Positive values rotate counter-clockwise, and negative values rotate clockwise. For example, typing 45 rotates the rectangle 45 degrees counter-clockwise. Typing -90 rotates it 90 degrees clockwise.

    • Rotate to a Specific Point (Second Point): Click a second point in the drawing. The rectangle will rotate so that the line from the base point to its original location is rotated to align with the line from the base point to the point you just clicked. This method is useful when you want to align the rectangle with another object in your drawing.

    • Use a Reference Angle (Optional): This is useful if you want to rotate the rectangle relative to its current angle. After specifying the base point, type R and press Enter to activate the "Reference" option.

      • AutoCAD will prompt you to "Specify reference angle." You can do this by:
        • Clicking two points defining its current rotation or
        • Typing the angle of its current rotation and pressing Enter.
      • AutoCAD will then prompt you to "Specify new angle." Type in the new angle relative to the World Coordinate System (WCS) or click a point to define the new angle.

Options to Consider:

  • Copy: If you want to keep the original rectangle and create a rotated copy, type C after selecting the object and before specifying the angle or second point.
  • 3D Rotation: For 3D rotations, you might consider using the 3DROTATE command, but it's unnecessary if you're just working with a 2D rectangle on a plane.

Example:

Let's say you have a rectangle and you want to rotate it 30 degrees counter-clockwise around its lower-left corner. You would:

  1. Type ROTATE and press Enter.
  2. Select the rectangle and press Enter.
  3. Click the lower-left corner of the rectangle as the base point.
  4. Type 30 and press Enter. The rectangle rotates 30 degrees counter-clockwise around its lower-left corner.

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