Adjust fill and stroke color and opacity
You can fill any selected path or shape with a solid color, a gradient, or a pattern of repeating bitmapped images. You can also remove the fill completely so that the inside of the object is fully transparent. Note that when you fill an object that has a stroke, the object is filled first and then stroked (the stroke always appears on top of the fill).
To select a fill or stroke type
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In the Properties panel, in the Appearance category, do one of the following:
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Click the Fill button or the Stroke button (or press X to toggle between the Fill and Stroke tabs).
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Between the Fill and Stroke tabs and the Favorites swatches, click one of the four fill types (see the following sections for more information).
-
-
No Fill To remove a fill from a path, click
-
No Fill
press / (slash). -
Solid To fill the path with a single, solid color, click Solid Fill
and then pick a color with the Color Picker. Press the COMMA key to fill a path with the current solid color. Press D if you want a solid white fill with a 1-pixel black stroke. -
Gradient To fill the path with a gradient, click Gradient Fill
or press the PERIOD key. -
Image To fill the path with a repeating pattern of a bitmapped image, select Image Fill
. To the right of the color swatches next to the four fill type buttons, click More swatches 
, and then pick an image from the Swatch gallery. You cannot use an image swatch for a stroke.
To adjust the opacity of a fill
When you lower an object's opacity, you increase its transparency so that you can see other objects behind it.
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In the Properties panel, in the Appearance category, drag the Fill Opacity
slider.
To adjust the opacity of a stroke
-
In the Properties panel, in the Appearance category, drag the Stroke Opacity
slider.
By default, the Fill and Stroke opacity sliders are linked so that changing one changes the other. If you want them to change independently, click Link/Unlink 
between the two sliders.
Some file formats do not support transparent objects.
To preview art that includes a transparent object
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On the Edit menu, point to Options, and then click Display.
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On the Display pane, under Display options, clear the Display transparency check box.
