Groups

Inkscape » Editing Basics » Groups

A set of objects can be collected into a Group. Once placed in a Group, the objects can be manipulated together, the Group acting as a single object. Groups can be nested; that is, a Group can be combined with other Groups or objects to make a higher level Group.

The following commands, found both in the Command Bar and under the Edit menu, can be used to make and break up groups:

Object → Group (Ctrl+G): Group selected items.
Object → Ungroup (Shift+Ctrl+G): Ungroup selected Group. Ungroups one level.

An alternative method to break up a Group is to select the Ungroup command from the menu that pops up when you Right Mouse Click over a Group.

Objects within Groups can be edited and manipulated without breaking up the Group. The following commands select objects within Groups:

Ctrl+Left Mouse Click: Select Within Group. Select an object within a Group. This command selects objects regardless of how many levels of Groups they are buried in.
Ctrl+Alt+Left Mouse Click: Select Under Within Group. Select an object within a Group that is under the cursor and that is next lower in z-order than the currently selected object. If the currently selected object is at the bottom in z-order, the top object is selected. This command selects objects regardless of how many levels of Groups they are buried in.
Shift+Ctrl+Alt+Left Mouse Click: Toggle Under in Groups. Add an unselected object or remove a selected object within a Group to or from a selection.

A Group can be entered or turned into a temporary Layer for editing. Two ways to Enter a Group and Exit a Group are available:

Double+Left Mouse Click on a Group to enter a Group. Click an object outside the Group to exit.
Ctrl+Enter on a Group to enter a Group. Ctrl+Backspace to leave a Group. This will take you up one group level.
Right Mouse Click over Group to pop up a menu. Select the Enter group command to enter the Group. The command line included the name of the Group that will be entered. Once in a Group, the menu option Go to parent will exit the Group (although there is no visible feedback).

	Tip
	To add an existing object to an existing Group, cut the object (Edit → Cut (Ctrl+X)), enter the Group (Double+Left Mouse Click), and then paste in place (Edit → Paste In Place (Ctrl+Alt+V)).

	Tip
	The XML Editor dialog can be very useful in rearranging objects between Groups.


Ordering Objects (Z-order)		Layers