SVG contains the following set of basic shape elements:
Mathematically, these shape elements are equivalent to a 'path' element that would construct the same shape. The basic shapes may be stroked, filled and used as clip paths. All of the properties available for 'path' elements also apply to the basic shapes.
The 'rect' element defines a rectangle which is axis-aligned with the current user coordinate system. Rounded rectangles can be achieved by setting appropriate values for attributes rx and ry.
<!ENTITY % SVG.rect.element "INCLUDE" > <![%SVG.rect.element;[ <!ENTITY % SVG.rect.content "(( %SVG.Description.class; )*, ( %SVG.Animation.class; )*)" > <!ELEMENT %SVG.rect.qname; %SVG.rect.content; > <!-- end of SVG.rect.element -->]]> <!ENTITY % SVG.rect.attlist "INCLUDE" > <![%SVG.rect.attlist;[ <!ATTLIST %SVG.rect.qname; %SVG.Core.attrib; %SVG.Conditional.attrib; %SVG.Style.attrib; %SVG.Paint.attrib; %SVG.Color.attrib; %SVG.Opacity.attrib; %SVG.Graphics.attrib; %SVG.Clip.attrib; %SVG.Mask.attrib; %SVG.Filter.attrib; %SVG.GraphicalEvents.attrib; %SVG.Cursor.attrib; %SVG.External.attrib; x %Coordinate.datatype; #IMPLIED y %Coordinate.datatype; #IMPLIED width %Length.datatype; #REQUIRED height %Length.datatype; #REQUIRED rx %Length.datatype; #IMPLIED ry %Length.datatype; #IMPLIED transform %TransformList.datatype; #IMPLIED > |
Attribute definitions:
If a properly specified value is provided for rx but not for ry, then the user agent processes the 'rect' element with the effective value for ry as equal to rx. If a properly specified value is provided for ry but not for rx, then the user agent processes the 'rect' element with the effective value for rx as equal to ry. If neither rx nor ry has a properly specified value, then the user agent processes the 'rect' element as if no rounding had been specified, resulting in square corners. If rx is greater than half of the width of the rectangle, then the user agent processes the 'rect' element with the effective value for rx as half of the width of the rectangle. If ry is greater than half of the height of the rectangle, then the user agent processes the 'rect' element with the effective value for ry as half of the height of the rectangle.
Mathematically, a 'rect' element can be mapped to an equivalent 'path' element as follows: (Note: all coordinate and length values are first converted into user space coordinates according to Units.)
Example rect01 shows a rectangle with sharp corners. The 'rect' element is filled with yellow and stroked with navy.
<?xml version="1.0" standalone="no"?> <!DOCTYPE svg PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD SVG 1.1//EN" "http://www.w3.org/Graphics/SVG/1.1/DTD/svg11.dtd"> <svg width="12cm" height="4cm" viewBox="0 0 1200 400" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" version="1.1"> <desc>Example rect01 - rectangle with sharp corners</desc> <!-- Show outline of canvas using 'rect' element --> <rect x="1" y="1" width="1198" height="398" fill="none" stroke="blue" stroke-width="2"/> <rect x="400" y="100" width="400" height="200" fill="yellow" stroke="navy" stroke-width="10" /> </svg>
View
this example as SVG (SVG-enabled browsers only)
Example rect02 shows two rounded rectangles. The rx specifies how to round the corners of the rectangles. Note that since no value has been specified for the ry attribute, it will be assigned the same value as the rx attribute.
<?xml version="1.0" standalone="no"?> <!DOCTYPE svg PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD SVG 1.1//EN" "http://www.w3.org/Graphics/SVG/1.1/DTD/svg11.dtd"> <svg width="12cm" height="4cm" viewBox="0 0 1200 400" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" version="1.1"> <desc>Example rect02 - rounded rectangles</desc> <!-- Show outline of canvas using 'rect' element --> <rect x="1" y="1" width="1198" height="398" fill="none" stroke="blue" stroke-width="2"/> <rect x="100" y="100" width="400" height="200" rx="50" fill="green" /> <g transform="translate(700 210) rotate(-30)"> <rect x="0" y="0" width="400" height="200" rx="50" fill="none" stroke="purple" stroke-width="30" /> </g> </svg>
View
this example as SVG (SVG-enabled browsers only)
The 'circle' element defines a circle based on a center point and a radius.
<!ENTITY % SVG.circle.element "INCLUDE" > <![%SVG.circle.element;[ <!ENTITY % SVG.circle.content "(( %SVG.Description.class; )*, ( %SVG.Animation.class; )*)" > <!ELEMENT %SVG.circle.qname; %SVG.circle.content; > <!-- end of SVG.circle.element -->]]> <!ENTITY % SVG.circle.attlist "INCLUDE" > <![%SVG.circle.attlist;[ <!ATTLIST %SVG.circle.qname; %SVG.Core.attrib; %SVG.Conditional.attrib; %SVG.Style.attrib; %SVG.Paint.attrib; %SVG.Color.attrib; %SVG.Opacity.attrib; %SVG.Graphics.attrib; %SVG.Clip.attrib; %SVG.Mask.attrib; %SVG.Filter.attrib; %SVG.GraphicalEvents.attrib; %SVG.Cursor.attrib; %SVG.External.attrib; cx %Coordinate.datatype; #IMPLIED cy %Coordinate.datatype; #IMPLIED r %Length.datatype; #REQUIRED transform %TransformList.datatype; #IMPLIED > |
Attribute definitions:
The arc of a 'circle' element begins at the "3 o'clock" point on the radius and progresses towards the "9 o'clock" point. The starting point and direction of the arc are affected by the user space transform in the same manner as the geometry of the element.
Example circle01 consists of a 'circle' element that is filled with red and stroked with blue.
<?xml version="1.0" standalone="no"?> <!DOCTYPE svg PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD SVG 1.1//EN" "http://www.w3.org/Graphics/SVG/1.1/DTD/svg11.dtd"> <svg width="12cm" height="4cm" viewBox="0 0 1200 400" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" version="1.1"> <desc>Example circle01 - circle filled with red and stroked with blue</desc> <!-- Show outline of canvas using 'rect' element --> <rect x="1" y="1" width="1198" height="398" fill="none" stroke="blue" stroke-width="2"/> <circle cx="600" cy="200" r="100" fill="red" stroke="blue" stroke-width="10" /> </svg>
View this example as SVG (SVG-enabled browsers only)
The 'ellipse' element defines an ellipse which is axis-aligned with the current user coordinate system based on a center point and two radii.
<!ENTITY % SVG.ellipse.element "INCLUDE" > <![%SVG.ellipse.element;[ <!ENTITY % SVG.ellipse.content "(( %SVG.Description.class; )*, ( %SVG.Animation.class; )*)" > <!ELEMENT %SVG.ellipse.qname; %SVG.ellipse.content; > <!-- end of SVG.ellipse.element -->]]> <!ENTITY % SVG.ellipse.attlist "INCLUDE" > <![%SVG.ellipse.attlist;[ <!ATTLIST %SVG.ellipse.qname; %SVG.Core.attrib; %SVG.Conditional.attrib; %SVG.Style.attrib; %SVG.Paint.attrib; %SVG.Color.attrib; %SVG.Opacity.attrib; %SVG.Graphics.attrib; %SVG.Clip.attrib; %SVG.Mask.attrib; %SVG.Filter.attrib; %SVG.GraphicalEvents.attrib; %SVG.Cursor.attrib; %SVG.External.attrib; cx %Coordinate.datatype; #IMPLIED cy %Coordinate.datatype; #IMPLIED rx %Length.datatype; #REQUIRED ry %Length.datatype; #REQUIRED transform %TransformList.datatype; #IMPLIED > |
Attribute definitions:
The arc of an 'ellipse' element begins at the "3 o'clock" point on the radius and progresses towards the "9 o'clock" point. The starting point and direction of the arc are affected by the user space transform in the same manner as the geometry of the element.
Example ellipse01 below specifies the coordinates of the two ellipses in the user coordinate system established by the viewBox attribute on the 'svg' element and the transform attribute on the 'g' and 'ellipse' elements. Both ellipses use the default values of zero for the cx and cy attributes (the center of the ellipse). The second ellipse is rotated.
<?xml version="1.0" standalone="no"?> <!DOCTYPE svg PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD SVG 1.1//EN" "http://www.w3.org/Graphics/SVG/1.1/DTD/svg11.dtd"> <svg width="12cm" height="4cm" viewBox="0 0 1200 400" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" version="1.1"> <desc>Example ellipse01 - examples of ellipses</desc> <!-- Show outline of canvas using 'rect' element --> <rect x="1" y="1" width="1198" height="398" fill="none" stroke="blue" stroke-width="2" /> <g transform="translate(300 200)"> <ellipse rx="250" ry="100" fill="red" /> </g> <ellipse transform="translate(900 200) rotate(-30)" rx="250" ry="100" fill="none" stroke="blue" stroke-width="20" /> </svg>
View this example as SVG (SVG-enabled browsers only)
The 'line' element defines a line segment that starts at one point and ends at another.
<!ENTITY % SVG.line.element "INCLUDE" > <![%SVG.line.element;[ <!ENTITY % SVG.line.content "(( %SVG.Description.class; )*, ( %SVG.Animation.class; )*)" > <!ELEMENT %SVG.line.qname; %SVG.line.content; > <!-- end of SVG.line.element -->]]> <!ENTITY % SVG.line.attlist "INCLUDE" > <![%SVG.line.attlist;[ <!ATTLIST %SVG.line.qname; %SVG.Core.attrib; %SVG.Conditional.attrib; %SVG.Style.attrib; %SVG.Paint.attrib; %SVG.Color.attrib; %SVG.Opacity.attrib; %SVG.Graphics.attrib; %SVG.Marker.attrib; %SVG.Clip.attrib; %SVG.Mask.attrib; %SVG.Filter.attrib; %SVG.GraphicalEvents.attrib; %SVG.Cursor.attrib; %SVG.External.attrib; x1 %Coordinate.datatype; #IMPLIED y1 %Coordinate.datatype; #IMPLIED x2 %Coordinate.datatype; #IMPLIED y2 %Coordinate.datatype; #IMPLIED transform %TransformList.datatype; #IMPLIED > |
Attribute definitions:
Mathematically, a 'line' element can be mapped to an equivalent 'path' element as follows: (Note: all coordinate and length values are first converted into user space coordinates according to Units.)
Because 'line' elements are single lines and thus are geometrically one-dimensional, they have no interior; thus, 'line' elements are never filled (see the 'fill' property).
Example line01 below specifies the coordinates of the five lines in the user coordinate system established by the viewBox attribute on the 'svg' element. The lines have different thicknesses.
<?xml version="1.0" standalone="no"?> <!DOCTYPE svg PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD SVG 1.1//EN" "http://www.w3.org/Graphics/SVG/1.1/DTD/svg11.dtd"> <svg width="12cm" height="4cm" viewBox="0 0 1200 400" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" version="1.1"> <desc>Example line01 - lines expressed in user coordinates</desc> <!-- Show outline of canvas using 'rect' element --> <rect x="1" y="1" width="1198" height="398" fill="none" stroke="blue" stroke-width="2" /> <g stroke="green" > <line x1="100" y1="300" x2="300" y2="100" stroke-width="5" /> <line x1="300" y1="300" x2="500" y2="100" stroke-width="10" /> <line x1="500" y1="300" x2="700" y2="100" stroke-width="15" /> <line x1="700" y1="300" x2="900" y2="100" stroke-width="20" /> <line x1="900" y1="300" x2="1100" y2="100" stroke-width="25" /> </g> </svg>
View
this example as SVG (SVG-enabled browsers only)
The 'polyline' element defines a set of connected straight line segments. Typically, 'polyline' elements define open shapes.
<!ENTITY % SVG.polyline.element "INCLUDE" > <![%SVG.polyline.element;[ <!ENTITY % SVG.polyline.content "(( %SVG.Description.class; )*, ( %SVG.Animation.class; )*)" > <!ELEMENT %SVG.polyline.qname; %SVG.polyline.content; > <!-- end of SVG.polyline.element -->]]> <!ENTITY % SVG.polyline.attlist "INCLUDE" > <![%SVG.polyline.attlist;[ <!ATTLIST %SVG.polyline.qname; %SVG.Core.attrib; %SVG.Conditional.attrib; %SVG.Style.attrib; %SVG.Paint.attrib; %SVG.Color.attrib; %SVG.Opacity.attrib; %SVG.Graphics.attrib; %SVG.Marker.attrib; %SVG.Clip.attrib; %SVG.Mask.attrib; %SVG.Filter.attrib; %SVG.GraphicalEvents.attrib; %SVG.Cursor.attrib; %SVG.External.attrib; points %Points.datatype; #REQUIRED transform %TransformList.datatype; #IMPLIED > |
Attribute definitions:
If an odd number of coordinates is provided, then the element is in error, with the same user agent behavior as occurs with an incorrectly specified 'path' element.
Mathematically, a 'polyline' element can be mapped to an equivalent 'path' element as follows:
Example polyline01 below specifies a polyline in the user coordinate system established by the viewBox attribute on the 'svg' element.
<?xml version="1.0" standalone="no"?> <!DOCTYPE svg PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD SVG 1.1//EN" "http://www.w3.org/Graphics/SVG/1.1/DTD/svg11.dtd"> <svg width="12cm" height="4cm" viewBox="0 0 1200 400" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" version="1.1"> <desc>Example polyline01 - increasingly larger bars</desc> <!-- Show outline of canvas using 'rect' element --> <rect x="1" y="1" width="1198" height="398" fill="none" stroke="blue" stroke-width="2" /> <polyline fill="none" stroke="blue" stroke-width="10" points="50,375 150,375 150,325 250,325 250,375 350,375 350,250 450,250 450,375 550,375 550,175 650,175 650,375 750,375 750,100 850,100 850,375 950,375 950,25 1050,25 1050,375 1150,375" /> </svg>
View this example as SVG (SVG-enabled browsers only)
The 'polygon' element defines a closed shape consisting of a set of connected straight line segments.
<!ENTITY % SVG.polygon.element "INCLUDE" > <![%SVG.polygon.element;[ <!ENTITY % SVG.polygon.content "(( %SVG.Description.class; )*, ( %SVG.Animation.class; )*)" > <!ELEMENT %SVG.polygon.qname; %SVG.polygon.content; > <!-- end of SVG.polygon.element -->]]> <!ENTITY % SVG.polygon.attlist "INCLUDE" > <![%SVG.polygon.attlist;[ <!ATTLIST %SVG.polygon.qname; %SVG.Core.attrib; %SVG.Conditional.attrib; %SVG.Style.attrib; %SVG.Paint.attrib; %SVG.Color.attrib; %SVG.Opacity.attrib; %SVG.Graphics.attrib; %SVG.Marker.attrib; %SVG.Clip.attrib; %SVG.Mask.attrib; %SVG.Filter.attrib; %SVG.GraphicalEvents.attrib; %SVG.Cursor.attrib; %SVG.External.attrib; points %Points.datatype; #REQUIRED transform %TransformList.datatype; #IMPLIED > |
Attribute definitions:
If an odd number of coordinates is provided, then the element is in error, with the same user agent behavior as occurs with an incorrectly specified 'path' element.
Mathematically, a 'polygon' element can be mapped to an equivalent 'path' element as follows:
Example polygon01 below specifies two polygons (a star and a hexagon) in the user coordinate system established by the viewBox attribute on the 'svg' element.
<?xml version="1.0" standalone="no"?> <!DOCTYPE svg PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD SVG 1.1//EN" "http://www.w3.org/Graphics/SVG/1.1/DTD/svg11.dtd"> <svg width="12cm" height="4cm" viewBox="0 0 1200 400" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg" version="1.1"> <desc>Example polygon01 - star and hexagon</desc> <!-- Show outline of canvas using 'rect' element --> <rect x="1" y="1" width="1198" height="398" fill="none" stroke="blue" stroke-width="2" /> <polygon fill="red" stroke="blue" stroke-width="10" points="350,75 379,161 469,161 397,215 423,301 350,250 277,301 303,215 231,161 321,161" /> <polygon fill="lime" stroke="blue" stroke-width="10" points="850,75 958,137.5 958,262.5 850,325 742,262.6 742,137.5" /> </svg>
View this example as SVG (SVG-enabled browsers only)
The following is the Backus-Naur Form (BNF) for points specifications in 'polyline' and 'polygon' elements. The following notation is used:
list-of-points: wsp* coordinate-pairs? wsp* coordinate-pairs: coordinate-pair | coordinate-pair comma-wsp coordinate-pairs coordinate-pair: coordinate comma-wsp coordinate coordinate: number number: sign? integer-constant | sign? floating-point-constant comma-wsp: (wsp+ comma? wsp*) | (comma wsp*) comma: "," integer-constant: digit-sequence floating-point-constant: fractional-constant exponent? | digit-sequence exponent fractional-constant: digit-sequence? "." digit-sequence | digit-sequence "." exponent: ( "e" | "E" ) sign? digit-sequence sign: "+" | "-" digit-sequence: digit | digit digit-sequence digit: "0" | "1" | "2" | "3" | "4" | "5" | "6" | "7" | "8" | "9" wsp: (#x20 | #x9 | #xD | #xA)+
Elements | Attributes | Content Model |
---|---|---|
path | StdAttrs, TestAttrs, ExternalResourcesRequiredAttrs, StyleAttrs, transform, d, pathLength, GraphicsElementsEventsAttrs, ColorPresentationAttrs, PaintPresentationAttrs, OpacityPresentationAttrs, GraphicsPresentationAttrs, CursorPresentationAttrs, FilterPresentationAttrs, MaskPresentationAttrs, PointerEventsPresentationAttrs, ClipPresentationAttrs, MarkerPresentationAttrs | (DescriptionElements | AnimationElements)* |
rect | StdAttrs, TestAttrs, StyleAttrs, GraphicsElementsEventsAttrs, ColorPresentationAttrs, PaintPresentationAttrs, OpacityPresentationAttrs, GraphicsPresentationAttrs, CursorPresentationAttrs, FilterPresentationAttrs, MaskPresentationAttrs, PointerEventsPresentationAttrs, ClipPresentationAttrs, x, y, width, height, rx, ry, transform | (DescriptionElements | AnimationElements)* |
circle | StdAttrs, TestAttrs, StyleAttrs, GraphicsElementsEventsAttrs, ColorPresentationAttrs, PaintPresentationAttrs, OpacityPresentationAttrs, GraphicsPresentationAttrs, CursorPresentationAttrs, FilterPresentationAttrs, MaskPresentationAttrs, PointerEventsPresentationAttrs, ClipPresentationAttrs, cx, cy, r, transform | (DescriptionElements | AnimationElements)* |
line | StdAttrs, TestAttrs, StyleAttrs, GraphicsElementsEventsAttrs, ColorPresentationAttrs, PaintPresentationAttrs, OpacityPresentationAttrs, GraphicsPresentationAttrs, CursorPresentationAttrs, FilterPresentationAttrs, MaskPresentationAttrs, PointerEventsPresentationAttrs, ClipPresentationAttrs, x1, y1, x2, y2, transform | (DescriptionElements | AnimationElements)* |
ellipse | StdAttrs, TestAttrs, StyleAttrs, GraphicsElementsEventsAttrs, ColorPresentationAttrs, PaintPresentationAttrs, OpacityPresentationAttrs, GraphicsPresentationAttrs, CursorPresentationAttrs, FilterPresentationAttrs, MaskPresentationAttrs, PointerEventsPresentationAttrs, ClipPresentationAttrs, cx, cy, rx, ry, transform | (DescriptionElements | AnimationElements)* |
polyline | StdAttrs, TestAttrs, StyleAttrs, GraphicsElementsEventsAttrs, ColorPresentationAttrs, PaintPresentationAttrs, OpacityPresentationAttrs, GraphicsPresentationAttrs, CursorPresentationAttrs, FilterPresentationAttrs, MaskPresentationAttrs, PointerEventsPresentationAttrs, ClipPresentationAttrs, points, transform | (DescriptionElements | AnimationElements)* |
polygon | StdAttrs, TestAttrs, StyleAttrs, GraphicsElementsEventsAttrs, ColorPresentationAttrs, PaintPresentationAttrs, OpacityPresentationAttrs, GraphicsPresentationAttrs, CursorPresentationAttrs, FilterPresentationAttrs, MaskPresentationAttrs, PointerEventsPresentationAttrs, ClipPresentationAttrs, points, transform | (DescriptionElements | AnimationElements)* |
The Shape Module defines the GraphicalElements content set.
Content Set Name | Elements in Content Set |
---|---|
GraphicalElements | rect, circle, line, polyline, polygon, ellipse, path |
The following interfaces are defined below: SVGRectElement, SVGCircleElement, SVGEllipseElement, SVGLineElement, SVGAnimatedPoints, SVGPolylineElement, SVGPolygonElement.
The SVGRectElement interface corresponds to the 'rect' element.
interface SVGRectElement : SVGElement, SVGTests, SVGLangSpace, SVGExternalResourcesRequired, SVGStylable, SVGTransformable, events::EventTarget { readonly attribute SVGAnimatedLength x; readonly attribute SVGAnimatedLength y; readonly attribute SVGAnimatedLength width; readonly attribute SVGAnimatedLength height; readonly attribute SVGAnimatedLength rx; readonly attribute SVGAnimatedLength ry; };
The SVGCircleElement interface corresponds to the 'circle' element.
interface SVGCircleElement : SVGElement, SVGTests, SVGLangSpace, SVGExternalResourcesRequired, SVGStylable, SVGTransformable, events::EventTarget { readonly attribute SVGAnimatedLength cx; readonly attribute SVGAnimatedLength cy; readonly attribute SVGAnimatedLength r; };
The SVGEllipseElement interface corresponds to the 'ellipse' element.
interface SVGEllipseElement : SVGElement, SVGTests, SVGLangSpace, SVGExternalResourcesRequired, SVGStylable, SVGTransformable, events::EventTarget { readonly attribute SVGAnimatedLength cx; readonly attribute SVGAnimatedLength cy; readonly attribute SVGAnimatedLength rx; readonly attribute SVGAnimatedLength ry; };
The SVGLineElement interface corresponds to the 'line' element.
interface SVGLineElement : SVGElement, SVGTests, SVGLangSpace, SVGExternalResourcesRequired, SVGStylable, SVGTransformable, events::EventTarget { readonly attribute SVGAnimatedLength x1; readonly attribute SVGAnimatedLength y1; readonly attribute SVGAnimatedLength x2; readonly attribute SVGAnimatedLength y2; };
The SVGAnimatedPoints interface supports elements which have a 'points' attribute which holds a list of coordinate values and which support the ability to animate that attribute.
Additionally, the 'points' attribute on the original element accessed via the XML DOM (e.g., using the getAttribute() method call) will reflect any changes made to points.
interface SVGAnimatedPoints { readonly attribute SVGPointList points; readonly attribute SVGPointList animatedPoints; };
Provides access to the base (i.e., static) contents of the points attribute.
Provides access to the current animated contents of the points attribute. If the given attribute or property is being animated, contains the current animated value of the attribute or property. If the given attribute or property is not currently being animated, contains the same value as 'points'.
The SVGPolylineElement interface corresponds to the 'polyline' element.
interface SVGPolylineElement : SVGElement, SVGTests, SVGLangSpace, SVGExternalResourcesRequired, SVGStylable, SVGTransformable, events::EventTarget, SVGAnimatedPoints {};
The SVGPolygonElement interface corresponds to the 'polygon' element.
interface SVGPolygonElement : SVGElement, SVGTests, SVGLangSpace, SVGExternalResourcesRequired, SVGStylable, SVGTransformable, events::EventTarget, SVGAnimatedPoints {};