Why can't I copy a designated area in my drawings in MS Onenote on Android?

Question

Why can't I copy a designated area in my drawings in MS Onenote on Android?

Attila Bálint Pap 20

I tried to simply lasso a part of my drawings in Onenote and was waiting for ,,copy/paste/etc." to pop up, but it didn't. I tried to look it up on the internet, but it seems like it's not possible.
Is it really impossible to just copy-paste a part of my drawings and notes (and not just single words/whole paragraphs)? It should be a basic function, it would help a lot with my classroom notes!

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Answer accepted by question author

Austin-H 8,355 Microsoft External Staff Moderator

Hi Attila Bálint Pap

Thank you for posting question to Microsoft Q&A.

According to this question, I have tried this on an Android device and I was able to do it.

User's image

As you could see, I was able to copy/cut the drawing after doing that, you might need to go back or click on the arrow like I red-circled from the screenshot above.
On Android, the menu doesn’t always appear automatically after lassoing. You often need to double-tap inside the selection or tap with your finger (not the stylus) to trigger the copy/paste menu. I tried many times to achieve this (it's hard to select this in just one time).

I tried to copy this image and paste this in Outlook and it is still working (as you could see my screenshot below).

User's image

Update: Solution has been acknowledge that in order to copy/cut the drawing, user needs to very quickly tap with S pen on the white circle with the arrows.
Reference: https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/answers/questions/5082323/how-to-use-the-lasso-%28to-copy-paste%29-handwriting-o

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Attila Bálint Pap 20 Reputation points

2025-09-21T13:12:33.5433333+00:00

Hello!
I'm very grateful for your prompt answer, and I tried to do as you told me. However, the "copy-paste-select all" window still doesn't pop up for me, regardless of whether I use the stylus, tap single or double, or hold my finger in the lassoed area. No window appears. I'm using a Samsung Tab S9 FE+ and OneNote version 16.0.19127.20224 (latest). On the other hand, it indeed works on my phone too, but I need to use my tablet. Sorry for not making clear what device I'm using in my first post.
Thanks for your advice in advance!
Austin-H 8,355 Reputation points Microsoft External Staff Moderator

2025-09-21T13:32:24.08+00:00

Hi @Attila Bálint Pap
Thanks for your answer.

As I do not have Android tablet in my testing environment, it's hard for me to reproduce the issue and give you the correct troubleshooting steps.

However, I found this discussion:

https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/answers/questions/5082323/how-to-use-the-lasso-%28to-copy-paste%29-handwriting-o

Please try this on your device to see how it goes. If it could be helpful - then I will update my initial answer to match with this. Hopefully it will work!

Looking forward to your update.

1 additional answer

Your answer

Attila Bálint Pap 20 Reputation points

2025-09-21T13:12:33.5433333+00:00

Hello!
I'm very grateful for your prompt answer, and I tried to do as you told me. However, the "copy-paste-select all" window still doesn't pop up for me, regardless of whether I use the stylus, tap single or double, or hold my finger in the lassoed area. No window appears. I'm using a Samsung Tab S9 FE+ and OneNote version 16.0.19127.20224 (latest). On the other hand, it indeed works on my phone too, but I need to use my tablet. Sorry for not making clear what device I'm using in my first post.
Thanks for your advice in advance!
Austin-H 8,355 Reputation points Microsoft External Staff Moderator

2025-09-21T13:32:24.08+00:00

Hi @Attila Bálint Pap
Thanks for your answer.

As I do not have Android tablet in my testing environment, it's hard for me to reproduce the issue and give you the correct troubleshooting steps.

However, I found this discussion:

https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/answers/questions/5082323/how-to-use-the-lasso-%28to-copy-paste%29-handwriting-o

Please try this on your device to see how it goes. If it could be helpful - then I will update my initial answer to match with this. Hopefully it will work!

Looking forward to your update.

Answer 1

Attila Bálint Pap 20

YEEEESSSS!
It works. Finally. Huh, you can't imagine the relief. Thank you very much! I really just had to tap VERY QUICKLY with the S pen on the white circle with the arrows.

Austin-H 8,355 Reputation points Microsoft External Staff Moderator

2025-09-21T14:03:48.2766667+00:00

Hi @Attila Bálint Pap
Thank you for your update.

I am glad that you have done this and let me know!

I will update the answer based on your experience along with what I found earlier.

If you find my initial answer partially helpful, please consider accepting the answer as it could help with future similar issues!

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Why can't I copy a designated area in my drawings in MS Onenote on Android?

1 additional answer

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