CorelDRAW Help | Reference: Symbols

Reference: Symbols

Modify symbol instances

The following object properties can be modified for symbol instances. If a symbol contains multiple objects, all objects in the symbol instance are treated collectively as a single object, just as if they were grouped.

Property	Notes
Position	Can be modified on the property bar. For more information, see Position objects.
Size	Can be modified on the property bar. For more information, see Size and scale objects.
Scale	Percentage is relative to the symbol definition. Can be modified on the property bar. For more information, see Size and scale objects.
Skew	For more information, see Skew and stretch objects.
Rotation angle	Can be modified on the property bar. For more information, see Rotate and mirror objects.
Transparency	Uniform transparency only. Can be modified in the Symbol section of the Properties docker.
Mirror	Can be modified on the property bar. For more information, see Rotate and mirror objects.
Wrap text	Can be modified in the Summary section of the Properties docker. Can also be modified on the property bar. For more information, see To wrap paragraph text around an object, artistic text, or a text frame.
Order	Can be modified on the property bar. For more information, see Change the order of objects.
Name	The name of an instance is displayed in the Symbols docker. Click twice to change it.

Unsupported object types

Most objects in CorelDRAW can be converted to symbols, with the following exceptions.

Unsupported object type	Notes
Linked or embedded objects	Includes bar codes
Objects with lenses that are not frozen	Lenses must be frozen.
Control objects in link groups (such as drop shadows, contours, blends, bevels, and extrusions)	All related objects in the link group must be included in the symbol. For example, if an object has a drop shadow, you cannot convert the object without the drop shadow. Alternatively, you can break the group apart.
Objects with Artistic Media effects applied	Spray effects must be broken apart into curve objects. Other Artistic Media effects must be either broken apart, or converted as a link group. Spray effects that contain transparencies cannot be converted to symbols.
Print merge fields
Linked bitmaps
Placed PDF or EPS files
Locked object	Object must be unlocked.
Paragraph text
Connector and dimension lines	Must be broken apart or included with the linked object or objects
Guidelines
Rollovers	You cannot convert a rollover to a symbol; however, you can include a symbol instance in a rollover state.
Objects with transparency or transparency effects applied	Transparency effects must be converted to a bitmap.