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2.2 HTML Paragraphs

A paragraph always starts on a new line, and is usually a block of text.

HTML Paragraphs

The HTML <p> element defines a paragraph. A paragraph always starts on a new line, and browsers automatically add some white space (a margin) before and after a paragraph.

Example 1: HTML paragraphs

<p>This is a paragraph.</p>
<p>This is another paragraph.</p>

HTML Display

You cannot be sure how HTML will be displayed. Large or small screens, and resized windows will create different results. With HTML, you cannot change the display by adding extra spaces or extra lines in your HTML code. The browser will automatically remove any extra spaces and lines when the page is displayed:

Example 2: HTML paragraphs display

<p>
This paragraph
contains a lot of lines
in the source code,
but the browser
ignores it.
</p>

<p>
This paragraph
contains         a lot of spaces
in the source         code,
but the        browser
ignores it.
</p>

HTML Horizontal Rules

The <hr> tag defines a thematic break in an HTML page, and is most often displayed as a horizontal rule. The <hr> element is used to separate content (or define a change) in an HTML page:

Example 3: HTML paragraphs with hr

<h1>This is heading 1</h1>
<p>This is some text.</p>
<hr>
<h2>This is heading 2</h2>
<p>This is some other text.</p>
<hr>

The <hr> tag is an empty tag, which means that it has no end tag.

HTML Line Breaks

The HTML <br> element defines a line break. Use <br> if you want a line break (a new line) without starting a new paragraph:

Example 4: HTML paragraph with br

<p>This is<br>a paragraph<br>with line breaks.</p>

The <br> tag is an empty tag, which means that it has no end tag.

The Poem Problem

This poem will display on a single line:

Example 5: HTML paragraphs ignore spaces

<p>
  My Bonnie lies over the ocean.

  My Bonnie lies over the sea.

  My Bonnie lies over the ocean.

  Oh, bring back my Bonnie to me.
</p>

Solution - The HTML <pre> Element

The HTML <pre> element defines preformatted text. The text inside a <pre> element is displayed in a fixed-width font (usually Courier), and it preserves both spaces and line breaks:

Example 6: HTML pre element

<pre>
  My Bonnie lies over the ocean.

  My Bonnie lies over the sea.

  My Bonnie lies over the ocean.

  Oh, bring back my Bonnie to me.
</pre>

HTML Tag Reference

W3Schools' tag reference contains additional information about HTML elements and their attributes.

Tag	Description
<p>	Defines a paragraph
<hr>	Defines a thematic change in the content
<br>	Inserts a single line break
<pre>	Defines pre-formatted text

For a complete list of all available HTML tags, visit HTML Tag Reference.