MTEXT — Multiline Text

Creates a formatted paragraph of text.

• Command: MTEXT · Global name: _MTEXT · Alias: T, MT
• Ribbon: Home › Annotation
• Ribbon: Annotate › Text
• Menu: Draw
• Toolbar: Draw

Creates multiline text (MTEXT): a paragraph inside a box, with line breaks and formatting (bold, italic, underline, color, height) within the same object. For one-line notes, TEXT is quicker.

Usage

1. Enter MTEXT (or T, MT) or click Multiline Text on the ribbon.
2. Specify the first corner of the box.

Specify first corner:

3. Specify the opposite corner or choose an option. The box width is the paragraph width: long lines wrap at the edge.

Specify opposite corner or [Height/Justify/Line spacing/Rotation/Style/Width/Columns]:

4. The Text Editor opens. Type the text and click OK. You can also type the lines on the command line; Enter on an empty line finishes.

Enter text (Enter on an empty line ends):

Options

• Height (H): text height (it offers the last one used, TEXTSIZE).
• Justify (J): attachment point of the box (TL, TC, TR, ML, MC, MR, BL, BC, BR).

Enter justification [TL/TC/TR/ML/MC/MR/BL/BC/BR] <…>:

• Style (S): text style; ? lists the ones in the drawing.
• Rotate (R): angle of the box and the text.
• Width (W): types the box width instead of the opposite corner (0, no limit).

Text Editor

• Style, Height, Justification and Width: the values for the whole paragraph.
• B, I and U: bold, italic and underline for the selection (or for all the text if nothing is selected).
• Color list and Color: applies the chosen color to the selection.
• × factor and Height button: changes the height of the selection relative to the paragraph.
• Field list and Field button: writes the field code at the cursor (date, file name, author, title, subject or user, %<\AcVar ...>%); on OK it becomes a field of the text, which UPDATEFIELD updates. Object property fields are inserted with FIELD.
• Each line in the box is a paragraph. Formats are stored as MTEXT codes, which can also be typed by hand.

Notes

• With a fixed-height style, the style height replaces the typed one.
• With an annotative style, the text is created annotative and its height is the paper height at the current annotation scale (CANNOSCALE); OBJECTSCALE adds more scales to it.
• Fields are inserted from the editor or with FIELD, and spelling is checked with SPELL.
• To change the text later, double-click it or use TEXTEDIT.
• Line spacing (L), when asked for the opposite corner: At least or Exactly and the factor (1.5x) or the distance between lines. Columns (C): dynamic (width, gutter, height) or static (total width, number, gutter, height); stored as AutoCAD does, and the text flows into them when each column's height is full (dynamic columns add columns; in static ones the last column overflows).

See also

TEXT · TEXTEDIT · STYLE · Text and styles