HTML - Phrase Tags

The phrase tags have been desicolgned for specific purposes, though they are displayed in a similar way as other basic tags like , , <pre>, and <tt>, you have seen in previous chapter. This chapter will take you through all the important phrase tags, so let's start seeing them one by one.

Emphasized Text

The element is used to denote text that has stress emphasis. By default, browsers typically render emphasized text in italic style, although the exact appearance may vary depending on CSS styles applied to the element.

Anything that appears within ... element is displayed as emphasized text.

Example

Here's an example of using the  element to emphasize text:

<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>

   <head>
      <title>Emphasized Text Example</title>
   </head>
	
   <body>
      <p>The following word uses an <em>emphasized</em> typeface.</p>
   </body>
	
</html>

Marked Text

In HTML, the  element is used to highlight or mark portions of text within a document. It is commonly employed to draw attention to specific words or phrases, making them stand out visually from the surrounding text. The  element is particularly useful for indicating search results, keywords, or important information within a block of text.

Syntax:

The  element is an inline-level element and does not require a closing tag. Its syntax is straightforward:

<mark>Highlighted Text</mark>

Anything that appears with-in ... element, is displayed as marked with yellow ink.

Example

<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>

   <head>
      <title>Marked Text Example</title>
   </head>
	
   <body>
      <p>The following word has been <mark>marked</mark> with yellow</p>
   </body>
	
</html>

Styling Marked Text

The appearance of marked text can be customized using CSS to match the design preferences of a website. Developers can apply styles such as background color, text color, font weight, or any other CSS properties to the  element to achieve the desired visual effect.

mark {
    background-color: yellow;
    color: black;
    font-weight: bold;
}

This CSS rule sets the background color of the marked text to yellow, changes the text color to black, and makes the text bold. However, developers can adjust these styles as needed to suit the design requirements of their projects.

Accessibility Considerations:

While the  element is a powerful tool for visually highlighting text, it's essential to consider accessibility implications. Ensure that the use of marked text does not hinder readability or comprehension for users with disabilities. Additionally, avoid relying solely on visual cues; provide alternative methods, such as descriptive labels or aria attributes, to convey the meaning of the highlighted text to assistive technologies.

Strong Text

Anything that appears within ... element is displayed as important text.

Example

<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>

   <head>
      <title>Strong Text Example</title>
   </head>
	
   <body>
      <p>The following word uses a <strong>strong</strong> typeface.</p>
   </body>
	
</html>

Text Abbreviation

You can abbreviate a text by putting it inside opening <abbr> and closing </abbr> tags. If present, the title attribute must contain this full description and nothing else.

Example

<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>

   <head>
      <title>Text Abbreviation</title>
   </head>
	
   <body>
      <p>My best friend's name is  <abbr title = "Abhishek">Abhy</abbr>.</p>
   </body>
	
</html>

Acronym Element

The <acronym> element allows you to indicate that the text between <acronym> and </acronym> tags is an acronym.

At present, the major browsers do not change the appearance of the content of the <acronym> element.

Example

<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>

   <head>
      <title>Acronym Example</title>
   </head>
	
   <body>
      <p>This chapter covers marking up text in <acronym>XHTML</acronym>.</p>
   </body>
	
</html>

Text Direction

The <bdo>...</bdo> element stands for Bi-Directional Override and it is used to override the current text direction.

Example

<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>

   <head>
      <title>Text Direction Example</title>
   </head>

   <body>
      <p>This text will go left to right.</p>
      <p><bdo dir = "rtl">This text will go right to left.</bdo></p>
   </body>

</html>

Special Terms

The <dfn>...</dfn> element (or HTML Definition Element) allows you to specify that you are introducing a special term. It's usage is similar to italic words in the midst of a paragraph.

Typically, you would use the <dfn> element the first time you introduce a key term. Most recent browsers render the content of a <dfn> element in an italic font.

Example

<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>

   <head>
      <title>Special Terms Example</title>
   </head>
	
   <body>
      <p>The following word is a <dfn>special</dfn> term.</p>
   </body>
	
</html>

Quoting Text

When you want to quote a passage from another source, you should put it in between <blockquote>...</blockquote> tags.

Text inside a <blockquote> element is usually indented from the left and right edges of the surrounding text, and sometimes uses an italicized font.

Example

<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>

   <head>
      <title>Blockquote Example</title>
   </head>
	
   <body>
      <p>The following description of XHTML is taken from the W3C Web site:</p>

      <blockquote>XHTML 1.0 is the W3C's first Recommendation for XHTML,following on 
         from earlier work on HTML 4.01, HTML 4.0, HTML 3.2 and HTML 2.0.</blockquote>
   </body>
	
</html>

Short Quotations

The <q>...</q> element is used when you want to add a double quote within a sentence.

Example

<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>

   <head>
      <title>Double Quote Example</title>
   </head>
	
   <body>
      <p>Amit is in Spain, <q>I think I am wrong</q>.</p>
   </body>
	
</html>

Text Citations

If you are quoting a text, you can indicate the source placing it between an opening <cite> tag and closing </cite> tag

As you would expect in a print publication, the content of the <cite> element is rendered in italicized text by default.

Example

<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>
   
   <head>
      <title>Citations Example</title>
   </head>
   
   <body>
      <p>This HTML tutorial is derived from <cite>W3 Standard for HTML</cite>.</p>
   </body>
   
</html>

Computer Code

Any programming code to appear on a Web page should be placed inside <code>...</code> tags. Usually the content of the <code> element is presented in a monospaced font, just like the code in most programming books.

Example

<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>
   
   <head>
      <title>Computer Code Example</title>
   </head>
   
   <body>
      <p>Regular text. <code>This is code.</code> Regular text.</p>
   </body>
   
</html>

Keyboard Text

When you are talking about computers, if you want to tell a reader to enter some text, you can use the <kbd>...</kbd> element to indicate what should be typed in, as in this example.

Example

<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>
   
   <head>
      <title>Keyboard Text Example</title>
   </head>
   
   <body>
      <p>Regular text. <kbd>This is inside kbd element</kbd> Regular text.</p>
   </body>
   
</html>

Programming Variables

This element is usually used in conjunction with the <pre> and <code> elements to indicate that the content of that element is a variable.

Example

<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>
   
   <head>
      <title>Variable Text Example</title>
   </head>
   
   <body>
      <p><code>document.write("<var>user-name</var>")</code></p>
   </body>
   
</html>

Program Output

The <samp>...</samp> element indicates sample output from a program, and script etc. Again, it is mainly used when documenting programming or coding concepts.

Example

<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>
   
   <head>
      <title>Program Output Example</title>
   </head>
   
   <body>
      <p>Result produced by the program is <samp>Hello World!</samp></p>
   </body>
   
</html>

Address Text

In HTML, the <address> element is used to define contact information for the author or owner of a document. It is commonly used to provide the postal address, email address, phone number, or other contact details associated with a website or web page.

Syntax:

The <address> element is a block-level element that typically appears within the footer section of a web page. Its syntax is simple:

<address>
    Contact Information Goes Here
</address>

The <address>...</address> element is used to contain any address.

Example

<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>
   
   <head>
      <title>Address Example</title>
   </head>
   
   <body>
      <address>388A, Road No 22, Jubilee Hills -  Hyderabad</address>
   </body>
   
</html>

Styling:

The <address> element does not have any default styling applied to it. Developers can apply custom styles using CSS to ensure that the contact information is presented in a visually appealing and consistent manner with the rest of the webpage.

address {
    font-style: italic;
    margin-top: 10px;
}

This CSS rule sets the font style of the <address> text to italic and adds a top margin of 10 pixels. Developers can further customize the appearance as needed to match the design requirements of their website.

Accessibility Considerations:

When using the <address> element, it's important to ensure that the contact information provided is accurate and up-to-date. Additionally, consider accessibility guidelines to ensure that the contact details are accessible to all users, including those using screen readers or other assistive technologies.

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