Learn how to group, ungroup, and regroup shapes in PowerPoint 2016 for Windows. You can also use convenient keyboard shortcuts.
Author: Geetesh Bajaj
Product/Version: PowerPoint 2016 for Windows
OS: Microsoft Windows 7 and higher
So what exactly does grouping mean? And what is ungrouping and regrouping going to do further? The moment you select a slide object such as a shape on a PowerPoint slide, you will see some selection handles, which indicates that the shape is selected. Select another shape while the first one is still selected and you see two sets of selection handles. If you need to similarly select many shapes on a slide fairly often, this sort of selection may become cumbersome and waste so much time. In that case, it's best you select all the shapes you need to work with, and then combine them into one "group" of shapes.
There are several reasons to group shapes and other slide objects:
Once you no longer need your shapes to be grouped, then ungrouping and regrouping shapes will also help you to a large extent. PowerPoint 2016 for Windows makes it simple to do these tasks. Let us explore the differences between these three tasks:
Select shapes (or any other slide objects) that you want to group in PowerPoint 2016 for Windows. Then follow any one of these three alternative processes:
Do you want more keyboard shortcuts?
Explore our PowerPoint Keyboard Shortcuts and Sequences Ebook that is updated for all PowerPoint versions.
Once the shapes are grouped, you can change the attributes for them as a single grouped entity as required. For example, if you rotate an entire group, all individual objects in that group will rotate together as a single object. Look at Figure 3, where you can see individual shapes rotated 45 degrees each (look at unrotated stage in Figure 1). Compare this with the group on the right which was also rotated by 45 degrees, you'll see that the rotation on the right looks much more predictable.
Figure 3: Rotation of 45 degrees applied to individual shapes (on the left) and a group (on the right)
Select the group you want to ungroup. Then follow any of these three alternative options:
To regroup (reconstitute) any hitherto ungrouped group, select any one of the shapes within a previous group. Thereafter follow any of these two alternative processes:
See Also:
Group, Nudge, and Reorder Shapes: Group, Ungroup, and Regroup Shapes in PowerPoint (Index Page)
Group, Ungroup, and Regroup Shapes in PowerPoint 2013 for WindowsYou May Also Like: Keep the Audience Attentive: by Claudyne Wilder | Flags and Maps PowerPoint Templates
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