Moving, reshaping, and deleting path segments

You can move, reshape, or delete individual segments in a path, and you can add or delete anchor points to change the configuration of segments.

Note: You can also apply a transformation, such as scaling, rotating, flipping, or distorting, to a segment or anchor point. See Applying transformations.

To move a straight segment:

1. Select the direct selection tool , and select the segment you want to adjust. To adjust the angle or length of the segment, select an anchor point.
2. Drag the selected segment to its new position.

To move a curved segment:

1. Select the direct selection tool , and select the points or segments you want to move. Be sure to select both points anchoring the segment.
2. Drag the selected anchor points or segments to new positions. Hold down Shift as you drag to constrain the movement to multiples of 45°.

Select points anchoring a curve. Then drag to move the curve.

To reshape a curved segment:

1. Select the direct selection tool , and select the curved segment you want to adjust. Direction lines appear for that segment.
2. Adjust the curve:
• To adjust the position of the segment, drag the segment.

Click to select the curve segment. Then drag to adjust.
• To adjust the shape of the segment on either side of a selected anchor point, drag the anchor point or the direction point. Hold down Shift as you drag to constrain movement to multiples of 45°.

Drag the anchor point, or drag the direction point.

To delete a segment:

1. Select the direct selection tool , and select the segment you want to delete.
2. Press Backspace (Windows) or Delete (Mac OS) to delete the selected segment. Pressing Backspace or Delete again erases the rest of the path component.