HTML Tag Explainer
A quick reference guide for standard HTML tags.
Document Structure
<html>The root element of an HTML page.
<head>Contains machine-readable information (metadata) about the document.
<title>Specifies a title for the HTML page (which is shown in the browser's title bar or tab).
<base>Specifies the base URL/target for all relative URLs in a document.
<link>Defines the relationship between the current document and an external resource (most often used to link to stylesheets).
<meta>Defines metadata about an HTML document, such as character set, page description, keywords, author, and viewport settings.
<style>Contains style information (CSS) for a document.
<script>Used to embed a client-side script (JavaScript).
<noscript>Defines an alternate content for users that have disabled scripts in their browser or have a browser that doesn't support script.
<body>Defines the document's body, which contains all the contents of an HTML document.
Sectioning & Headings
<address>Defines contact information for the author/owner of a document or an article.
<article>Specifies independent, self-contained content.
<aside>Defines some content aside from the content it is placed in (like a sidebar).
<footer>Defines a footer for a document or section.
<header>Represents a container for introductory content or a set of navigational links.
<h1> to <h6>Define HTML headings, from most important (h1) to least important (h6).
<main>Specifies the main content of a document.
<nav>Defines a set of navigation links.
<section>Defines a section in a document.
Text Content
<blockquote>Defines a section that is quoted from another source.
<div>Defines a division or a section, often used as a container for other HTML elements.
<p>Defines a paragraph.
<pre>Defines preformatted text, preserving spaces and line breaks.
<hr>Represents a thematic break between paragraph-level elements (e.g., a horizontal rule).
Inline Text Semantics
<a>Defines a hyperlink.
<b>Defines bold text without any extra importance, such as keywords.
<i>Defines a part of text in an alternate voice or mood (often italicized).
<u>Defines text that should be stylistically different from normal text, such as a misspelled word.
<span>An inline container used to mark up a part of a text, or a part of a document.
<strong>Defines text with strong importance, indicating that its contents have a higher degree of seriousness or urgency.
<em>Defines emphasized text.
<code>Defines a piece of computer code.
<br>Inserts a single line break.
<mark>Defines marked or highlighted text for reference purposes.
<sub>Defines subscripted text.
<sup>Defines superscripted text.
<time>Defines a specific time (or datetime).
<abbr>Defines an abbreviation or an acronym.
<cite>Defines the title of a creative work (e.g., a book, a poem, a song, a movie).
<dfn>Specifies a term that is going to be defined within the content.
<q>Defines a short inline quotation.
<small>Defines smaller text (like copyright and other side-comments).
<wbr>Defines a word-break opportunity, where a long word can be broken if needed.
Lists
<ul>Defines an unordered (bulleted) list.
<ol>Defines an ordered (numbered) list.
<li>Defines a list item.
<dl>Defines a description list.
<dt>Defines a term/name in a description list.
<dd>Describes a term/name in a description list.
Tables
<table>Defines an HTML table.
<caption>Defines a table caption.
<th>Defines a header cell in a table.
<tr>Defines a row in a table.
<td>Defines a standard cell in a table.
<thead>Groups the header content in a table.
<tbody>Groups the body content in a table.
<tfoot>Groups the footer content in a table.
<col>Specifies column properties for each column within a <colgroup> element.
<colgroup>Specifies a group of one or more columns in a table for formatting.
Forms
<form>Used to create an HTML form for user input.
<input>Specifies an input field where the user can enter data.
<textarea>Defines a multi-line text input control.
<button>Defines a clickable button.
<label>Defines a label for several form elements.
<select>Creates a drop-down list.
<option>Defines an option in a drop-down list.
<fieldset>Groups related elements in a form.
<legend>Defines a caption for the <fieldset> element.
<datalist>Specifies a list of pre-defined options for an <input> element.
<optgroup>Groups related options in a drop-down list.
<output>Represents the result of a calculation or user action.
<progress>Represents the progress of a task.
<meter>Defines a scalar measurement within a known range (a gauge).
Images & Media
<img>Embeds an image in an HTML page.
<video>Embeds video content.
<audio>Embeds sound content.
<figure>Specifies self-contained content, like illustrations, diagrams, photos, code listings, etc.
<figcaption>Defines a caption for a <figure> element.
<picture>Provides multiple image resources for a <img> element to adapt to different devices or screen sizes.
<source>Defines multiple media resources for <picture>, <audio>, or <video> elements.
<svg>Defines a container for SVG graphics.
<canvas>Used to draw graphics, on the fly, via scripting (usually JavaScript).
<map>Defines a client-side image-map.
<area>Defines an area inside an image-map.
Interactive Elements
<details>Defines additional details that the user can view or hide.
<summary>Defines a visible heading for a <details> element.
<dialog>Defines a dialog box or window.
Web Components
<template>A mechanism for holding client-side content that is not to be rendered when a page is loaded but may subsequently be instantiated during runtime using JavaScript.
<slot>A placeholder inside a web component that you can fill with your own markup.