# Cannot rotate a shape

**URL:** <https://forums.sketchup.com/t/cannot-rotate-a-shape/142245>\
**Category:** SketchUp\
**Created:** [November 13, 2020, 2:55pm UTC](https://forums.sketchup.com/t/cannot-rotate-a-shape/142245 "2020-11-13T14:55:31Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 7\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![cooper5114](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ecae2f/32.png) [@cooper5114](https://forums.sketchup.com/u/cooper5114)\
**Post date:** [November 13, 2020, 2:55pm UTC](https://forums.sketchup.com/t/cannot-rotate-a-shape/142245/1 "2020-11-13T14:55:31Z")

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for some reason i cannot rotate anything. it’s been a while since i used sketchup but i don’t think i’m doing anything wrong. To try and debug this is just created a simple 2D rectangle and still could not rotate it. Any ideas?

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**Author:** ![Box](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/sketchup/user_avatar/forums.sketchup.com/box/32/235164_2.png) [@Box](https://forums.sketchup.com/u/Box)\
**Post date:** [November 13, 2020, 2:58pm UTC](https://forums.sketchup.com/t/cannot-rotate-a-shape/142245/2 "2020-11-13T14:58:50Z")

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> [@cooper5114](#):
>
> Any ideas?

Since you are doing nothing wrong, perhaps the universe has flipped.  
Perhaps if you showed us what is happening we could prove the universe is at fault.  
A quick screen shot or better still, a model upload.

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**Author:** ![simoncbevans](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/sketchup/user_avatar/forums.sketchup.com/simoncbevans/32/15904_2.png) [@simoncbevans](https://forums.sketchup.com/u/simoncbevans)\
**Post date:** [November 13, 2020, 3:03pm UTC](https://forums.sketchup.com/t/cannot-rotate-a-shape/142245/3 "2020-11-13T15:03:07Z")

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Presumably you are using the Rotate Tool and not the Protractor tool?

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**Author:** ![cooper5114](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ecae2f/32.png) [@cooper5114](https://forums.sketchup.com/u/cooper5114)\
**Post date:** [November 13, 2020, 3:12pm UTC](https://forums.sketchup.com/t/cannot-rotate-a-shape/142245/4 "2020-11-13T15:12:15Z")

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ok…yes its been a while and i’m sure the universe it not at fault…now i’m starting to feel _really_ dumb. Don’t you use the protractor to perform the rotate?

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**Author:** ![cooper5114](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ecae2f/32.png) [@cooper5114](https://forums.sketchup.com/u/cooper5114)\
**Post date:** [November 13, 2020, 3:14pm UTC](https://forums.sketchup.com/t/cannot-rotate-a-shape/142245/5 "2020-11-13T15:14:00Z")

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OK…ignore all this. yes i see that there’s a rotate tool vs protractor

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<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Box](https://sea2.discourse-cdn.com/sketchup/user_avatar/forums.sketchup.com/box/32/235164_2.png) [@Box](https://forums.sketchup.com/u/Box)\
**Post date:** [November 13, 2020, 3:16pm UTC](https://forums.sketchup.com/t/cannot-rotate-a-shape/142245/6 "2020-11-13T15:16:33Z")

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So have you managed to rotate?

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<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![cooper5114](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ecae2f/32.png) [@cooper5114](https://forums.sketchup.com/u/cooper5114)\
**Post date:** [November 14, 2020, 1:07am UTC](https://forums.sketchup.com/t/cannot-rotate-a-shape/142245/7 "2020-11-14T01:07:52Z")

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Yes. Once it dawned on my that the actual tool was separate from the protractor it was obvious. Amazing what you forget when you put a tool down for a couple years.