Illustrator Reference

Selection Tool (V) → Selects and moves objects.

Direct Selection (A) → Selects anchor points or path segments.

Group Selection → Selects objects inside groups.

Magic Wand (Y) → Selects similar colors or attributes.

Lasso (Q) → Freehand selection of anchor points.

Pen Tool (P) → Creates vector paths and curves.

Add Anchor Point (+) → Adds anchor to path.

Delete Anchor Point (-) → Removes anchor.

Convert Anchor → Changes corner/smooth point.

Type Tool (T) → Creates text.

Area Type → Text inside shape.

Type on Path → Text along a path.

Line Segment (\) → Draws straight lines.

Arc Tool → Draws arcs.

Spiral Tool → Draws spirals.

Rectangle (M) → Draws rectangles.

Rounded Rectangle → Rounded corners.

Ellipse (L) → Draws circles/ellipses.

Polygon → Draws polygons.

Star → Draws stars.

Paintbrush (B) → Draws brush strokes.

Blob Brush (Shift+B) → Paints filled shapes.

Pencil (N) → Freehand vector drawing.

Smooth Tool → Smooths paths.

Eraser (Shift+E) → Erases vector areas.

Rotate (R) → Rotates objects.

Scale (S) → Resizes objects.

Reflect (O) → Mirrors objects.

Shear → Skews objects.

Free Transform (E) → Scale/rotate/distort.

Shape Builder (Shift+M) → Merge/subtract shapes.

Pathfinder → Combine/divide shapes.

Width Tool (Shift+W) → Vary stroke width.

Gradient (G) → Apply gradients.

Mesh (U) → Gradient mesh coloring.

Eyedropper (I) → Copy color/appearance.

Blend (W) → Blend between objects.

Symbol Sprayer (Shift+S) → Spray symbols.

Graph Tools → Create charts.

Artboard (Shift+O) → Create/edit artboards.

Hand (H) → Move canvas view.

Zoom (Z) → Zoom view.

Path → Vector line made of anchor points.

Anchor Point → Node controlling path direction.

Handle → Curve direction control.

Stroke → Outline of shape.

Fill → Interior color.

Corner → Sharp point.

Smooth → Curved point.

Closed Path → Shape loop.

Open Path → Line.

Stroke Weight → Thickness of outline.

Dashed Line → Patterned stroke.

Cap → Stroke end style.

Join → Stroke corner style.

Opacity → Transparency.

Blend Mode → Layer interaction.

Effects → Visual effects.

Layer → Container of objects.

New Layer → Create layer.

Group → Combine objects.

Arrange → Change stacking order.

Lock → Prevent editing.

Hide → Invisible layer.

Point Type → Click text.

Area Type → Box text.

Kerning → Space between letters.

Tracking → Overall letter spacing.

Leading → Line spacing.

Baseline Shift → Vertical text shift.

Outline Text → Convert text to shapes.

RGB → Screen colors.

CMYK → Print colors.

Swatches → Saved colors.

Gradient → Multi-color fill.

Pattern → Repeating fill.

Recolor Artwork → Change colors globally.

New → Create document.

Open → Open file.

Save → Save AI file.

Save As → Save copy.

Export → Export PNG/JPG/SVG/PDF.

Place → Insert image.