AutoCAD is more than just a drafting tool—it’s the backbone of civil engineering design. From building layouts and structural details to road cross-sections and site development plans, civil engineers rely on a core set of commands every single day. Knowing these commands not only speeds up drafting but also ensures accuracy, consistency, and professional-quality output.
Below is a complete list of the most important AutoCAD commands every civil engineer should know for daily use.
Basic Drawing & Editing
LINE (L) – Draw straight lines
POLYLINE (PL) – Draw connected line segments
CIRCLE (C) – Draw circles
RECTANGLE (REC) – Draw rectangles
ARC (A) – Draw arcs
ELLIPSE (EL) – Draw ellipses
SPLINE (SPL) – Draw smooth curves
POINT (PO) – Place a point
HATCH (H) – Fill closed areas with patterns
TEXT (T / DT) – Add single or multiline text
XLINE / RAY – Draw infinite construction lines or rays
DIVIDE / MEASURE – Divide objects into equal segments or mark points
REGION – Create a 2D region from closed objects
Modification Tools
MOVE (M) – Move objects
COPY (CO / CP) – Copy objects
ROTATE (RO) – Rotate objects
SCALE (SC) – Scale objects
TRIM (TR) – Trim objects to boundaries
EXTEND (EX) – Extend objects to boundaries
OFFSET (O) – Create parallel geometry
MIRROR (MI) – Mirror objects
STRETCH (S) – Stretch parts of objects
LENGTHEN (LEN) – Change object lengths
FILLET (F) – Round object corners
CHAMFER – Bevel the corner between two objects
ALIGN – Align objects in 2D/3D
BREAK / BREAKATPOINT – Break objects into pieces
JOIN – Join line or arc segments
REVCLOUD – Create revision clouds
Object Management
LAYERS (LA) – Manage layers
MATCHPROP (MA) – Match object properties
PROPERTIES (CH) – Modify object properties
GROUP (G) – Group multiple objects
UNGROUP (UNG) – Ungroup grouped objects
BLOCK (B) – Create blocks
INSERT (I) – Insert blocks
WBLOCK – Write a block to a separate file
EXPLODE (X) – Break compound objects into parts
OVERKILL – Remove overlapping lines
XCLIP – Clip external references or blocks
LAYMRG – Merge layers
LAYDEL – Delete unused layers
LAYFRZ / LAYTHW – Freeze or thaw layers
FILTER / QSELECT – Select objects by properties
DATAEXTRACTION – Extract block or object data
Annotation & Dimensioning
DIM (D / DIMLINEAR) – Add dimensions
LEADER (LE / MLEADER) – Add leader lines with text
MTEXT (T) – Multiline text
TABLE (TB) – Insert tables
QLEADER – Quick leader command
TEXTEDIT (TEDIT) – Edit text
DIMSTYLE (D) – Manage dimension styles
ANNOTATIVE – Annotative scaling for text and dimensions
DIMCENTER – Add center marks or centerlines
DIMANGULAR / DIMRADIUS / DIMDIAMETER – Specialized dimensioning
DIMREASSOCIATE – Reconnect dimensions to geometry
FIELD – Insert dynamic text (date, filename, etc.)
ATTDEF / ATTEDIT – Define and edit block attributes
Viewing & Navigation
ZOOM (Z) – Zoom in/out
PAN (P) – Move around in the drawing
REGEN (RE) – Regenerate the display
U – Undo the last command
REDO (CTRL+Y) – Redo last action
ISOLATE / HIDEOBJECTS – Hide or isolate objects
LAYISO / LAYUNISO – Isolate or restore layers
VIEW / VIEWPORT – Save views or create viewports
MVIEW – Create and manage multiple viewports
VPORTS – Split model space into multiple views
Layout & Plotting
LAYOUT – Switch and manage layouts
PAGESETUP – Configure page setups for plotting
PLOT – Print or plot drawings
EXPORTPDF / EXPORTDWF – Export drawings to external formats
Advanced Tools & 3D
XREF (X) – Attach external references
PURGE – Clean unused items
AUDIT – Check drawing for errors
OSNAP (F3) – Object snaps for precision
GRID / SNAP – Use grids and snaps for accuracy
EXTRUDE – Convert 2D shapes into 3D solids
REVOLVE – Revolve profiles into 3D objects
UNION / SUBTRACT / INTERSECT – Boolean operations
PRESSPULL – Push or pull solid faces
SECTION / SECTIONPLANE – Generate sections
SLICE – Cut 3D solids with planes
MATERIALS / RENDER – Apply and visualize materials
GEOGRAPHICLOCATION – Assign real-world coordinates
Utility & Cleanup
PURGE – Remove unused layers, blocks, linetypes
AUDIT – Repair drawing errors
RECOVER – Restore corrupted drawings
DWGPROPS – Document properties
DWGCONVERT – Batch convert DWG file versions
LAYISO / LAYUNISO – Layer isolation tools
OVERKILL – Clean duplicate objects
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