How to Draw Centipede — Free Practice Sheets

Drawing a centipede is a lesson in long, low proportions and repeated shapes. The body is a flat segmented chain, the legs curve outward in pairs, and the head carries two long antennae. This page explains how to study a reference, place the silhouette, add segment plates and legs, and check your work against visible features rather than exact matching. Each practice sheet asks you to observe carefully and draw deliberately.

Start With the Body Shape and Proportion

Before drawing legs, establish the centipede's overall silhouette. A centipede reads as a long, narrow form, much longer than it is wide. Draw a long vertical oval as the body outline, keeping the width modest so the finished animal does not look like a beetle or a worm. The oval gives you a boundary for the segmented plates and a center line for placing legs evenly on both sides.

Proportion matters more than detail at this stage. Compare the length of the body to its width in the reference, and compare the head end to the tail end. The head is slightly broader and carries antennae; the rear tapers and carries two posterior appendages. Keep those endpoint conditions clear before adding small features.

1. Draw a long vertical oval for the body outline.
2. Check that the oval is clearly longer than it is wide.
3. Mark the head end at the top and the tail end at the bottom.
4. Lightly indicate a center line down the oval for placing segments.

Add Rounded Segment Plates Down the Center

A centipede's back is divided into repeated plates. Draw a series of rounded segment plates down the center of the body, working from head to tail. Keep the plates similar in size along the middle and slightly smaller near the ends. Overlap them gently so the body reads as a continuous chain rather than separate circles.

The plates are the visual rhythm of the drawing. If one plate is much wider than its neighbors, the body looks lumpy. If the plates stop before the tail, the silhouette looks unfinished. Compare your spacing with the reference and adjust before moving to the legs.

1. Begin at the head end and draw the first rounded plate.
2. Continue down the center, keeping plate widths consistent.
3. Reduce plate size slightly toward the tail.
4. Check that plates reach both ends of the body outline.

Attach Curved, Segmented Legs in Pairs

Legs make the centipede recognizable. Attach curved, segmented legs in pairs along both sides of the body. Each leg should bend outward and then slightly downward, with a small joint marking the segment. Place pairs at regular intervals so the two sides stay balanced.

Legs are where drawings most often go wrong. Uneven counts, legs that point straight out like spokes, or legs that cross the body all weaken the shape. Work down one side, then the other, matching each pair to the same plate. Keep the curves gentle and the joints visible.

1. Choose a plate and draw one leg curving outward from its left side.
2. Draw the matching leg on the right side of the same plate.
3. Add a small joint mark partway along each leg.
4. Repeat down the body, keeping pairs aligned and curves consistent.

Finish the Head, Antennae, and Tail Appendages

Add two long antennae at the top of the head, angling outward and forward. At the bottom, add two posterior appendages that extend beyond the last segment. These endpoint features separate a centipede from similar long-bodied animals and should be clearly visible in the finished drawing.

This is also the moment to compare your drawing with the reference. Check the long flat segmented body, the rounded plates, the paired curved legs, the two antennae, and the two tail appendages. Other drawings can be correct, so assess the visible features and proportions rather than pixel-perfect matching.

1. Draw two long antennae at the head, angling outward.
2. Add two posterior appendages at the tail end.
3. Compare your drawing with the reference for the five key features.
4. Adjust any leg pair or plate that breaks the overall proportion.

Check your work

• The body is clearly longer than it is wide, matching the reference proportion.
• Rounded segment plates run down the center from head to tail with consistent spacing.
• Legs appear in pairs along both sides, curved and segmented, with balanced placement.
• Two long antennae are present at the head end.
• Two posterior appendages are present at the tail end.
• The drawing preserves the five key features even if small details differ from the reference.

Worked example

centipede: Trace the reference outline, then practise the contour independently. Compare with the separate full reference sheet.

Common mistakes

• Drawing the body too wide, so it looks like a beetle rather than a centipede. Redraw the oval narrower and longer, then check its length-to-width ratio against the reference before adding plates.
• Placing legs unevenly or skipping pairs on one side. Match each leg to a specific plate and draw the left and right leg of a pair together before moving down.
• Leaving out the antennae or tail appendages. Treat the two antennae and two posterior appendages as required endpoint features and check for them before finishing.

Questions and answers