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3.5 HTML Block & Inline

Every HTML element has a default display value, depending on what type of element it is. There are two display values: block and inline.

Block-level Elements

A block-level element always starts on a new line and takes up the full width available (stretches out to the left and right as far as it can).

The <div> element is a block-level element.

Example 1: HTML block elements

<div>Hello World</div>

Here are the block-level elements in HTML:

Inline Elements

An inline element does not start on a new line and it only takes up as much width as necessary. This is a <span> element inside a paragraph.

Example 2: HTML span element part 1

<span>Hello World</span>

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 3: HTML div element

<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>

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 4: HTML span element part 2

<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

There are two display values: block and inline
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 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 HTML Tag Reference.

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Module 3: More HTML Elements