Every HTML element has a default display value, depending on what type of element it is.
The two most common display values are block and inline.
Block-level Elements
A block-level element always starts on a new line, and the browsers automatically add some space (a margin) before and after the element.
A block-level element always takes up the full width available (stretches out to the left and right as far as it can).
Two commonly used block elements are: <p> and <div>.
The <p> element defines a paragraph in an HTML document.
The <div> element defines a division or a section in an HTML document.
The <p> element is a block-level element.
The <div> element is a block-level element.
Here are the block-level elements in HTML:
Inline Elements
An inline element does not start on a new line.
An inline element only takes up as much width as necessary.
This is a <span> element inside a paragraph.
Here are the inline elements in HTML:
Note: An inline element cannot contain a block-level element!
The <div> Element
The <div> element is often used as a container for other HTML elements.
The <div> element has no required attributes, but style, class and id are common.
When used together with CSS, the <div> element can be used to style blocks of content:
Example
<div style="background-color:black;color:white;padding:20px;">
<h2>London</h2>
<p>London is the capital city of England. It is the most populous city in the United Kingdom, with a metropolitan area of over 13 million inhabitants.</p>
</div>
You will learn more about the <div> element in the next chapter.
The <span> Element
The <span> element is an inline container used to mark up a part of a text, or a part of a document.
The <span> element has no required attributes, but style, class and id are common.
When used together with CSS, the <span> element can be used to style parts of the text:
Example
<p>My mother has <span style="color:blue;font-weight:bold;">blue</span> eyes and my father has <span style="color:darkolivegreen;font-weight:bold;">dark green</span> eyes.</p>
Chapter Summary
- A block-level element always starts on a new line and takes up the full width available
- An inline element does not start on a new line and it only takes up as much width as necessary
- The
<div>element is a block-level and is often used as a container for other HTML elements - The
<span>element is an inline container used to mark up a part of a text, or a part of a document
HTML Exercises
HTML Tags
| Tag | Description |
|---|---|
| <div> | Defines a section in a document (block-level) |
| <span> | Defines a section in a document (inline) |
For a complete list of all available HTML tags, visit our HTML Tag Reference.
Video: HTML Block and Inline
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