web api instance method

CanvasRenderingContext2D: beginPath() method

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.

[!NOTE] To create a new sub-path, i.e., one matching the current canvas state, you can use moveTo().

Syntax

beginPath()

Parameters

None.

Return value

None (undefined).

Examples

Creating distinct paths

This example creates two paths, each of which contains a single line.

HTML

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

JavaScript

The beginPath() method is called before beginning each line, so that they may be drawn with different colors.

const canvas = document.getElementById("canvas");
const 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();

Result

Interactive exampleOpen the canonical MDN source to run this embedded demo.

Specifications

SpecificationsStandards references are available on the canonical MDN page.

Browser compatibility

Browser compatibilityCompatibility data is available on the canonical MDN page.