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HTML class Attribute
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The HTML class attribute is used to specify a class for an HTML element.
Multiple HTML elements can share the same class.
The class Attribute
The class attribute is often used to point to a class name in a style sheet. It can also be used
by a JavaScript to access and manipulate elements with the specific class name.
In the following example we have three <div> elements with a class attribute with the value
of "city". All of the three <div> elements will be styled equally according to the .city style
definition in the head section:
Example
<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>
<head>
<style>
.city {
background-color: tomato;
color: white;
border: 2px solid black;
margin: 20px;
padding: 20px;
}
</style>
</head>
<body>
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<div class="city">
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<h2>London</h2> SQL PYTHON JAVA PHP HOW TO W3.CSS C C++
<p>London is the capital of England.</p>
</div>
<div class="city">
<h2>Paris</h2>
<p>Paris is the capital of France.</p>
</div>
<div class="city">
<h2>Tokyo</h2>
<p>Tokyo is the capital of Japan.</p>
</div>
</body>
</html>
Try it Yourself »
In the following example we have two <span> elements with a class attribute with the value
of "note". Both <span> elements will be styled equally according to the .note style definition
in the head section:
Example
<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>
<head>
<style>
.note {
font-size: 120%;
color: red;
}
</style>
</head>
<body>
<h1>My <span class="note">Important</span> Heading</h1>
<p>This is some <span class="note">important</span> text.</p>
</body>
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Tip: The class attribute can be used on any HTML element.
Note: The class name is case sensitive!
Tip: You can learn much more about CSS in our CSS Tutorial.
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The Syntax For Class
To create a class; write a period (.) character, followed by a class name. Then, define the CSS
properties within curly braces {}:
Example
Create a class named "city":
<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>
<head>
<style>
.city {
background-color: tomato;
color: white;
padding: 10px;
}
</style>
</head>
<body>
<h2 class="city">London</h2>
<p>London is the capital of England.</p>
<h2 class="city">Paris</h2>
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<p>Paris is the Exercises
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<h2 class="city">Tokyo</h2>SQL PYTHON JAVA PHP HOW TO W3.CSS C C++
<p>Tokyo is the capital of Japan.</p>
</body>
</html>
Try it Yourself »
Multiple Classes
HTML elements can belong to more than one class.
To define multiple classes, separate the class names with a space, e.g. <div class="city
main">. The element will be styled according to all the classes specified.
In the following example, the first <h2> element belongs to both the city class and also to
the main class, and will get the CSS styles from both of the classes:
Example
<h2 class="city main">London</h2>
<h2 class="city">Paris</h2>
<h2 class="city">Tokyo</h2>
Try it Yourself »
Different Elements Can Share Same Class
Different HTML elements can point to the same class name.
In the following example, both <h2> and <p> point to the "city" class and will share the same
style:
Example
<h2 class="city">Paris</h2>
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<p class="city">Paris is the capital of France</p>
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Use of the class Attribute in JavaScript
The class name can also be used by JavaScript to perform certain tasks for specific elements.
JavaScript can access elements with a specific class name with the getElementsByClassName()
method:
Example
Click on a button to hide all elements with the class name "city":
<script>
function myFunction() {
var x = document.getElementsByClassName("city");
for (var i = 0; i < x.length; i++) {
x[i].style.display = "none";
}
}
</script>
Try it Yourself »
Don't worry if you don't understand the code in the example above.
You will learn more about JavaScript in our HTML JavaScript chapter, or you can study our
JavaScript Tutorial.
Chapter Summary
The HTML class attribute specifies one or more class names for an element
Classes are used by CSS and JavaScript to select and access specific elements
The class attribute can be used on any HTML element
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The class name is case sensitive
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Different HTML elements can point to the same class name
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JavaScript can access elements with a specific class name with the
getElementsByClassName() method
?
Exercise
True or False. The class name is case sensitive
True
False
Submit Answer »
Video: HTML Class
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