How To Draw A Square - WikiHow

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How to Draw a Square Download Article Reviewed by Jeanine Hattas Wilson

Last Updated: March 18, 2025 Fact Checked

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• Protractor Method
|
• Compass Method
|
• Video
|
• Q&A
|
• Tips
|
• Warnings
|
• Things You'll Need

|Show more |Show less X

This article was reviewed by Jeanine Hattas Wilson. Jeanine Hattas Wilson is a Professional Painter and the President of Hattas Public Murals, Inc. With nearly 20 years of experience, Jeanine specializes in creating, overseeing, designing, and painting murals. Jeanine holds a BA in Advertising from Marquette University and a Studio Painting Minor from The Milwaukee Institute of Art & Design. She has studied at The Atelier Artien in Paris, France, Los Angeles Academy of Figurative Art, and under renowned artists such as Robert Liberace, Michael Siegel, and William Cochran. To date, Hattas Public Murals has painted nearly 5,000 commissioned works of art in homes and commercial and public spaces. This article has been fact-checked, ensuring the accuracy of any cited facts and confirming the authority of its sources. This article has been viewed 236,448 times.

A square is a quadrilateral with four right angles and four congruent sides. Easy to draw, right? Not so fast. Drawing a perfect square requires more than just a steady hand. Learning to draw a perfect square using either a protractor or compass is a useful skill.

Steps

Method 1 Method 1 of 2:

Protractor Method

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1. 1 Draw a side of the square using ruler. Keep track of the length of this side so you can make all four sides the same length.
2. 2 Considering the side drawn in the previous step as one of the arms, construct a right angle on each end of it. Thus the end points of the side drawn in the previous step would also be the two vertices of these right angles.[1] Advertisement
3. 3 Mark a point on each of the newly drawn arms (of the two right angles), at a distance (measured from the respective vertex of the right angle) which is same as the length of the side drawn initially.[2]
   • Join these two points.
4. 4 You just drew a perfect square! Erase any extraneous constructions if you so wish.
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Method 2 Method 2 of 2:

Compass Method

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1. 1 Construct a right angle (let's name it LMN) as described here. Ensure that each of the arms are longer than the desired side length of the square.
2. 2 Place spike of the compass on the vertex of the right angle constructed in the previous step, i.e. on the point M, and set the width of the compass equal to the desired side length of the square - this set width remains unchanged until the entire construction is completed.[3]
   • Draw an arc cutting the arm MN at some point (say P)
   • Draw another arc to cut the arm LM at some point (say Q)
3. 3 Place the spike of the compass on point Q and draw an arc somewhere below the arm MN.[4]
4. 4 Place the spike of the compass on point P and draw another arc which cuts the arc drawn in the previous step at some point (say R).[5]
5. 5 Connect the points P and R and the points Q and R using a straightedge.[6]
   • The figure PMQR is a square. You may erase other unnecessary constructions if you so wish.
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Community Q&A

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• Question How do I construct a square with triangles? Donagan Top Answerer Use the triangle's 90° angle to draw a right angle. Measure from the vertex the same distance along each line you've drawn. Mark that distance on each line. Then draw a right angle vertex at each mark, and extend these new lines until they intersect at the fourth vertex. Thanks! We're glad this was helpful. Thank you for your feedback. If wikiHow has helped you, please consider a small contribution to support us in helping more readers like you. We’re committed to providing the world with free how-to resources, and even $1 helps us in our mission. Support wikiHow Yes No Not Helpful 6 Helpful 14
• Question How do I draw a circle that has a radius of 3.6cm? Donagan Top Answerer Use a compass. Pick a point for the circle's center. draw a straight line in any direction and measure 3.6 cm along the line from the point to another point on the line. That's a radius of the circle. Put the pivot point of the compass on that first point and the pencil lead on the second point 3.6 cm away. Inscribe a circle through that second point. Thanks! We're glad this was helpful. Thank you for your feedback. If wikiHow has helped you, please consider a small contribution to support us in helping more readers like you. We’re committed to providing the world with free how-to resources, and even $1 helps us in our mission. Support wikiHow Yes No Not Helpful 5 Helpful 16
• Question How do I construct square whose diagonal is 5.5 cm? Donagan Top Answerer Draw a line segment 5.5 cm long. Draw a line that bisects the first line perpendicularly. Extend the second line 2.75 cm (half of 5.5 cm) in each direction from the first line. Draw four lines connecting in turn the four ends of the line segments. That's the square. Thanks! We're glad this was helpful. Thank you for your feedback. If wikiHow has helped you, please consider a small contribution to support us in helping more readers like you. We’re committed to providing the world with free how-to resources, and even $1 helps us in our mission. Support wikiHow Yes No Not Helpful 12 Helpful 13

See more answers Ask a Question 200 characters left Include your email address to get a message when this question is answered. Submit Advertisement

Things You'll Need

• Paper
• Ruler
• Protractor or Compass
• Pen or Pencil

Tips

• Do not always erase the construction lines, sometimes your teacher wants work to be shown. Thanks Helpful 9 Not Helpful 1

Submit a Tip All tip submissions are carefully reviewed before being published Name Please provide your name and last initial Submit Thanks for submitting a tip for review! Advertisement

Warnings

• The spike on a regular compass is potentially a safety hazard. Don't poke people with it, throw it across the room, or do anything else that could cause injury. If you are not experienced with using one, exercise increased caution. Thanks Helpful 2 Not Helpful 0

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You Might Also Like

Easy Ways to Draw a Parallelogram How toCreate a Perfect Circle Without Tracing How toConstruct a Perpendicular Line to a Given Line Through Point on the Line How toConstruct a Golden Rectangle How toDraw an Equilateral Triangle How toDraw a Hexagon How toDraw a Polygon How toConstruct a 90 Degrees Angle Using Compass and Ruler How toDraw a Rectangle How toConstruct an Isosceles Triangle How to Draw or Map Out a Perfect Octagon Every Time 2 Ways to Draw the Fibonacci Spiral How toConstruct an Octagon with a Compass How toBisect a Line With a Compass and Straightedge Advertisement

References

1. ↑ https://youtu.be/LvXIyZIGaxA?t=80
2. ↑ https://youtu.be/LvXIyZIGaxA?t=90
3. ↑ https://mathbitsnotebook.com/Geometry/Constructions/CCconstructionSquare.html
4. ↑ https://www.mathopenref.com/constsquare.html
5. ↑ https://www.mathopenref.com/constsquare.html
6. ↑ https://mathbitsnotebook.com/Geometry/Constructions/CCconstructionSquare.html

About This Article

Reviewed by: Jeanine Hattas Wilson Artist This article was reviewed by Jeanine Hattas Wilson. Jeanine Hattas Wilson is a Professional Painter and the President of Hattas Public Murals, Inc. With nearly 20 years of experience, Jeanine specializes in creating, overseeing, designing, and painting murals. Jeanine holds a BA in Advertising from Marquette University and a Studio Painting Minor from The Milwaukee Institute of Art & Design. She has studied at The Atelier Artien in Paris, France, Los Angeles Academy of Figurative Art, and under renowned artists such as Robert Liberace, Michael Siegel, and William Cochran. To date, Hattas Public Murals has painted nearly 5,000 commissioned works of art in homes and commercial and public spaces. This article has been viewed 236,448 times. 26 votes - 56% Co-authors: 30 Updated: March 18, 2025 Views: 236,448 Categories: Geometry | Drawing Shapes Article SummaryX

To draw a square, start by drawing a straight line using a ruler. Then, measure the line so you can make the other sides of the square the same length. Next, draw a line going straight up from each end of the first line that are the same length as the first line. The angle between these lines and the first line should be 90 degrees. Finally, connect the upper ends of the 2 new lines with a straight line. If you want to learn how to draw a square using a compass, keep reading the article! Did this summary help you?YesNo

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  "It helped me to do my homework, it is also very easy."

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Yes No Advertisement Cookies make wikiHow better. By continuing to use our site, you agree to our cookie policy. Reviewed by: Jeanine Hattas Wilson Artist 26 votes - 56% Click a star to vote Co-authors: 30 Updated: March 18, 2025 Views: 236,448

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Apr 15, 2017

"It helped me to do my homework, it is also very easy."

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"3,4,5, and compass both worked perfectly." Share yours! More success stories Hide success stories

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