HTML <dd> tag, together with the <dl> and <dt> tags, is used to create a definition list. The <dd> tag contains a description of the term, which is defined by the <dt> tag. There should be at a minimum one <dt> tag followed by at a minimum one <dd> tag for each group. It is possible to list:

  • one term followed by several descriptions,
  • one term followed by one description,
  • several terms followed by one description,
  • several terms followed by several descriptions.

To determine the list itself, we use the <dl> tag. A single term may have several definitions in the description list. (Learn more about HTML lists).

The <dd> element is a block-level element and can comprise other elements: paragraphs, lists, images, links, and so on. It is placed within <body>.

The default content of the <dd> element has an outer margin on the left side.

Syntax

The <dd> tag comes in pairs. The content is written between the opening (<dd>) and closing (</dd>) tags.

Example of the HTML <dd> tag:

<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>
  <head>
    <title>Title of the document</title>
  </head>
  <body>
    <h1>Definition list:</h1>
    <dl>
      <dt>Tea</dt>
      <dd>- hot drink</dd>
      <dt>Juice</dt>
      <dd>- ice drink</dd>
    </dl>
  </body>
</html>

Result

dd exemple

Example of the HTML <dd> tag for inserting a dialogue:

<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>
  <head>
    <title>Title of the document</title>
  </head>
  <body>
    <dl>
      <dt>George</dt>
      <dd>Hi</dd>
      <dd>What’s up?</dd>
      <dt>Mary</dt>
      <dd>Hi.</dd>
      <dd>I’m doing well, what about you?</dd>
      <dt>George</dt>
      <dd>Thanks, everything is fine. What are you doing?</dd>
      <dt>Mary</dt>
      <dd>I’m going to a party today in the evening. And you?</dd>
    </dl>
  </body>
</html>

Attributes

The <dd>tag supports the Global Attributes and the Event Attributes.

How to style <dd> tag?

Common properties to alter the visual weight/emphasis/size of text in <dd> tag:

  • CSS font-style property sets the style of the font. normal | italic | oblique | initial | inherit.
  • CSS font-family property specifies a prioritized list of one or more font family names and/or generic family names for the selected element.
  • CSS font-size property sets the size of the font.
  • CSS font-weight property defines whether the font should be bold or thick.
  • CSS text-transform property controls text case and capitalization.
  • CSS text-decoration property specifies the decoration added to text, and is a shorthand property for text-decoration-line, text-decoration-color, text-decoration-style.

Coloring text in <dd> tag:

  • CSS color property describes the color of the text content and text decorations.
  • CSS background-color property sets the background color of an element.

Text layout styles for <dd> tag:

  • CSS text-indent property specifies the indentation of the first line in a text block.
  • CSS text-overflow property specifies how overflowed content that is not displayed should be signalled to the user.
  • CSS white-space property specifies how white-space inside an element is handled.
  • CSS word-break property specifies where the lines should be broken.

Other properties worth looking at for <dd> tag:

Browser support

chrome edge firefox safari opera

Practice Your Knowledge

What is the function of the <dd> tag in HTML?

Quiz Time: Test Your Skills!

Ready to challenge what you've learned? Dive into our interactive quizzes for a deeper understanding and a fun way to reinforce your knowledge.

Do you find this helpful?