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CanvasRenderingContext2D.beginPath

The CanvasRenderingContext2D.beginPath() method of the Canvas 2D API starts a new path by emptying the list of sub-paths. Call this method when you want to create a new path.

Syntax

void ctx.beginPath();

Examples

Using the `beginPath` method

This is just a simple code snippet which uses the beginPath method.

HTML

<canvas id="canvas"></canvas>

JavaScript

var canvas = document.getElementById('canvas');
var ctx = canvas.getContext('2d');

// First path
ctx.beginPath();
ctx.strokeStyle = 'blue';
ctx.moveTo(20, 20);
ctx.lineTo(200, 20);
ctx.stroke();

// Second path
ctx.beginPath();
ctx.strokeStyle = 'green';
ctx.moveTo(20, 20);
ctx.lineTo(120, 120);
ctx.stroke();

Edit the code below and see your changes update live in the canvas:

Playable code

<canvas id="canvas" width="400" height="200" class="playable-canvas"></canvas>
<div class="playable-buttons">
  <input id="edit" type="button" value="Edit" />
  <input id="reset" type="button" value="Reset" />
</div>
<textarea id="code" class="playable-code" style="height:200px">
// First path
ctx.beginPath();
ctx.strokeStyle = 'blue';
ctx.moveTo(20,20);
ctx.lineTo(200,20);
ctx.stroke();

// Second path
ctx.beginPath();
ctx.strokeStyle = 'green';
ctx.moveTo(20,20);
ctx.lineTo(120, 120);
ctx.stroke();</textarea>

var canvas = document.getElementById("canvas");
var ctx = canvas.getContext("2d");
var textarea = document.getElementById("code");
var reset = document.getElementById("reset");
var edit = document.getElementById("edit");
var code = textarea.value;

function drawCanvas() {
  ctx.clearRect(0, 0, canvas.width, canvas.height);
  eval(textarea.value);
}

reset.addEventListener("click", function() {
  textarea.value = code;
  drawCanvas();
});

edit.addEventListener("click", function() {
  textarea.focus();
})

textarea.addEventListener("input", drawCanvas);
window.addEventListener("load", drawCanvas);

Specifications

Specification	Status	Comment
WHATWG HTML Living Standard The definition of 'CanvasRenderingContext2D.beginPath' in that specification.	Living Standard

Browser compatibility

Feature	Chrome	Edge	Firefox (Gecko)	Internet Explorer	Opera	Safari
Basic support	(Yes)	(Yes)	(Yes)	(Yes)	(Yes)	(Yes)

Feature	Android	Chrome for Android	Edge	Firefox Mobile (Gecko)	IE Mobile	Opera Mobile	Safari Mobile
Basic support	(Yes)	(Yes)	(Yes)	(Yes)	(Yes)	(Yes)	(Yes)