Aligning Objects to the Selection Box

As you saw in the previous section, when you align objects to each other, their position is actually based on the selection box. Once objects are enclosed in a selection box, you can resize the selection box to define the alignment. By moving the sides of the selection box, you can specify the position on the page where you want the objects to align.

To resize the selection box for object alignment

1. Select the objects:

2. Place the on the sizing handle that is on the side you want to resize. The will change to:

  • To left-align objects, drag the left side of the selection box to the place where you want your objects to line up:

  • To right-align objects, drag the right side of the selection box to the place where you want the objects to line up:

  • To top-align the objects, drag the top of the selection box to the position where you want the tops of the objects to line up:

  • To bottom-align the objects, drag the bottom of the selection box to the place where you want the bottoms of the objects to line up:

  • To center the objects horizontally between two specific points, adjust the left and right sides of the selection box:

  • To center the objects vertically between two specific points, adjust the top and bottom of the selection box:

To align objects to the selection box with the context menu

1. Select the objects you want to align.

2. Resize the selection box so that the edges are positioned where you want the objects to align.

3. Right-click in the selection box to display the context menu.

4. Click on Align or Distribute. A submenu will appear.

5. Select one of the following from the submenu:

Option Action
Align Left To align the objects to the left side of the selection box.
Align Center To align the objects to the horizontal center of the selection box.
Align Right To align the objects to the right side of the selection box.
Align Top To align the objects to the top of the selection box.
Align Middle To align the objects to the middle (vertical center) of the selection box.
Align Bottom To align the objects to the bottom of the selection box.

To align objects to the selection box with the tool bar

1. Select the objects you want to align.

2. Resize the selection box so that the edges are positioned where you want the objects to align.

3. Select one of the following from the tool bar:

Button Action
To align the objects to the left side of the selection box.
To align the objects to the horizontal center of the selection box.
To align the objects to the right side of the selection box.
To align the objects to the top of the selection box.
To align the objects to the middle (vertical center) of the selection box.
To align the objects to the bottom of the selection box.