A series of centrifuge tests was conducted to explore the earth pressures mobilised in loose and dense sand for a complete set of active movement modes of a rigid retaining wall: rotation about the base, translation and rotation about the top. Earth pressures behind the wall were measured by a Tekscan pressure mapping system. This paper reveals that earth pressures at all depths decrease simultaneously with active wall rotation about the base, while those in shallow layers can increase with active wall translation and rotation about the top. A linkage between earth pressures and shear strains was built as a simplified constitutive law, together with deformation mechanisms, allowing designers to predict flexible wall deflections during construction as well as ultimate collapse.