HTML <p> Tag
The HTML <p> tag is a block-level element that is used to define a paragraph of text in a web page. It creates a new line before and after the element, taking up the full width of its parent container.
This semantic tag is commonly used to structure text content on a web page, such as articles, blog posts, or product descriptions. You can add other HTML tags, such as <strong> or <em>, within the <p> tag to add emphasis or formatting to specific words or phrases within the paragraph.
Properly structuring your text content with the <p> tag is important, as it can help improve the accessibility and usability of your web page. Screen readers and other assistive technologies rely on semantic tags like <p> to accurately interpret and present the content to users.
Syntax
The <p> tag comes in pairs. The content is written between the opening (<p>) and closing (</p>) tags. If the closing tag is omitted, it is considered that the end of the paragraph matches with the start of the next block-level element.
TIP
Spaces between the opening <p> tag and its content are ignored by the browser. In order to set an indent, use the CSS text-indent property .
DANGER
The <p> tag cannot contain tables and other block-level elements.
Example of the HTML <p> tag:
Example of the HTML <p> Tag
<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>
<head>
<title>Title of the document</title>
</head>
<body>
<p>This is a paragraph</p>
</body>
</html>Result
Using the CSS
To align a text in a paragraph, instead of the obsolete align attribute, use the CSS text-align property.
Example of the HTML <p> tag used with the CSS text-align property:
HTML <p> Tag with the CSS text-align property
<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>
<head>
<title>Title of the document</title>
<style>
.paragraph {
text-align: center;
}
</style>
</head>
<body>
<h1>Title of the document</h1>
<div class="paragraph">
<p>The text alignment to the center is set with CSS property text-align</p>
</div>
</body>
</html>Example of the HTML <p> tag used with the <br> tag:
Example of the HTML <p> tag with the HTML <br> tag:
<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>
<head>
<title>Title of the document</title>
</head>
<body>
<p> Inside the paragraph, we can put the tag <br />, <br /> to transfer a part of the text to another line if necessary.</p>
<p>Lorem ipsum, or lipsum as it is sometimes known, is dummy text used in laying out print, graphic or web designs. <br /> The passage is attributed to an unknown typesetter in the 15th century who is thought to have scrambled parts of Cicero's De Finibus Bonorum et Malorum for use in a type specimen book.</p>
</body>
</html>Attributes
| Attribute | Value | Description |
|---|---|---|
| align | right left justify | Defines the text alignment. Not supported in HTML5 |
The <p> tag also supports the Global Attributes and the Event Attributes.
How to style an HTML <p> Tag
<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>
<head>
<title>Title of the document</title>
<style>
p {
color: blue;
font-size: 18px;
text-align: justify;
}
</style>
</head>
<body>
<p>This paragraph is styled with CSS.</p>
</body>
</html>Practice
What is the purpose of the HTML <p> tag?