Drawing shapes in OneNote - explained quickly and easily

How to draw shapes? OneNote, for example, in Microsoft Office 2021 Standard on Windows 11, is considered one of the best tools when it comes to making quick notes, records or sketches. For better illustration and overview, a circle or a triangle, for example, can be drawn in different ways – with the Surface Pen or freehand in OneNote. We show here how this works in the Microsoft 365 Family programme, for example, in the Windows 11 Home operating system.

Draw shapes easily with the graphics tablet

With a special graphics tablet or a tablet PC with the Windows 11 Pro or Windows 11 Pro N operating system, in which Microsoft Office 365 Home is installed, for example, you can freehand draw whatever comes to mind in OneNote. Simply draw a rectangle, circle or triangle with the Surface Pen next to, below or in the middle of the notes. Handwritten notes, stick figures or anything else you like can also be drawn on the screen just like on normal paper.

Just draw a rectangle with your finger? Of course!

If you don’t have a special pen for drawing at hand, you can also simply put your shapes and notes „on paper“ with your finger or the mouse.

  • To do this, first select the option „Draw with mouse or finger“ in the „Draw“ menu.
  • In the same menu, the thickness of the pen can be selected.
  • With the option „Freehand colour“ you can determine the colour of the drawing.
  • Now you can draw on the touch screen with your finger or on any other PC with the mouse cursor.

If you don’t like it, simply delete it

Anyone can miss a line. No problem in OneNote, mistakes or unattractive drawings can be easily erased:

  • Tap on „Eraser“ and choose one of the following options:
  • „Medium eraser“ manually erases certain parts of the drawing.
  • „Brush stroke eraser“ erases entire drawing gestures, i.e. sections of the drawing, with one tap.

Drawing shapes more neatly with the defaults

Of course, anything freehanded into shape with the Surface Pen in OneNote looks suitably wild. Especially if you want to show your notes or individual sections to others, you can draw neater shapes with the presets in the programme under Windows 11 Education or Windows 11 Enterprise in Microsoft Office 2021 Home and Business, among others. To do this, simply call up the „Shapes“ function. The menu then shows predefined geometric figures. Simply select the appropriate one and place it in the right place on the page in One Note. To do this, click with the cursor on the place where you want to draw a circle or a rectangle, for example. Then select the corresponding shape by holding down the left mouse button and it appears in the previously selected place. With the markings that appear around the shape, you can now draw everything larger or smaller. Moving the shapes and, of course, deleting them are also child’s play.

All in one with „Freehand in Shape

One of the most practical functions of OneNote in Microsoft 365 Business Premium, for example, under Windows 11 Pro for Workstation is „Freehand in Shape“. It is located on the Draw tab. A click on the button switches on automatic shape recognition.

  • So first the function at the top of the menu is switched on.
  • Now draw the desired shapes with the Surface Pen as usual.
  • OneNote recognises the shape on its own and automatically converts it with clean, even edges.
  • At the end, simply deactivate „Freehand in shape“ again in the menu.

Tip: Right next to the function „Freehand in shape“ you will find the option „Freehand in text“. The selection automatically converts handwritten text passages into more legible print.

Header image: ©monticellllo, stock.adobe.com