--- title: "ContextMenu Component" ms.date: "03/30/2017" helpviewer_keywords: - "menus [Windows Forms], shortcut menus" - "Windows Forms, menus" - "pop-up menus" - "ContextMenu component [Windows Forms]" - "menus [Windows Forms], context menus" - "context menus [Windows Forms], for Windows Forms" - "shortcut menus [Windows Forms], ContextMenu component" ms.assetid: 9b93ccbc-c0fe-44a2-968e-faac25971831 --- # ContextMenu Component (Windows Forms) > [!NOTE] > Although `MenuStrip` and `ContextMenuStrip` replace and add functionality to the and controls of previous versions, and are retained for both backward compatibility and future use if you choose. The Windows Forms `ContextMenu` component is used to provide users with an easily accessible shortcut menu of frequently used commands that are associated with the selected object. The items in a shortcut menu are frequently a subset of the items from main menus that appear elsewhere in the application. Shortcut menus are usually available by right-clicking the mouse. On Windows Forms they are associated with other controls. ## In This Section [ContextMenu Component Overview](contextmenu-component-overview-windows-forms.md) Introduces the general concepts of the `ContextMenu` component, which allows users to create menus of frequently used commands associated with a selected object. [How to: Add and Remove Menu Items with the Windows Forms ContextMenu Component](add-and-remove-menu-items-with-wf-contextmenu-component.md) Explains how to add and remove shortcut menu items in Windows Forms. ## Reference Provides reference information on the class and its members. ## Related Sections [Controls to Use on Windows Forms](controls-to-use-on-windows-forms.md) Provides a complete list of Windows Forms controls, with links to information on their use. ## See also - -