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HTML label tag

Note: If you don't know what an element/tag is and/or how you must use it we recommend you to read our HTML tags and attributes tutorial that you can find in our HTML tutorials section.

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Description

The HTML label element associates a piece of text to a control. The content of this element is supposed to label the control. This is a very important issue when targeting non visual audiences, as it helps the users determine the control's purpose.

The relation between the control and the label is set when the attributes "id" (in the control) and "for" (in the label) match.

Note that in most cases, browsers pass the focus to the control when the label is clicked.

Examples

The following example shows a simple text control associated to its label.

Code
<label for="lfname">First name:</label> <input type="text" id="lfname" name="fname" />
View

Attributes

id (name)

The "id" attribute assigns an identifier to the associated element. This identifier must be unique in the document and can be used to refer to that element in other instances (e.g., from client-side scripts).

<p id="paragraph1">This is the first paragraph, named "paragraph1". To dynamically change its properties use this identifier.</p>

class (cdata)

The "class" attribute assigns a class name (or a list of class names separated by spaces) to the container element. It's used together with style sheets and tells the browser the class (or classes) to which the element is associated with.

A class gives presentational attributes to elements (read more at the Cascading Style Sheets tutorial).

<p class="references">This article is based on the book "Wind in the trees" by Jhon L. Brooks</p>
<p class="references important">This article is based on the book "Wind in the trees" by Jhon L. Brooks... and is more important than the one before.</p>

style (style)

This attribute is used to define presentational attributes for the containing element, and its value should be composed by style sheets properties. Although, in some cases, it can become useful, a better practice is to place presentational attributes in external files, relating them to elements with the "class" attribute. This way you keep the semantic and presentational parts of your document separated.

You can find more information about presentational attributes at the Cascading Style Sheets tutorial.

<p style="color: #0000FF; font-size: 12pt">This is a paragraph with a defined style.</p>
<p>And this is another text without style.</p>

title (text)

The purpose of this attribute is to provide a title for the element. Its value must be a short and accurate description of the element. Browsers usually render it as a "tool tip" when the user puts the mouse pointer over the element for a small period of time.

Code
<a title="HTMLQuick.com" href="http://www.htmlquick.com">HTML code</a>
View

lang (langcode)

Specifies the language of an element's content. The default value in "unknown".

When writing XHTML 1.0 documents, the attribute used to specify the language of an elements is "xml:lang". For forward and backward compatibility both attributes can be used simultaneously like in the example below. Note, that in XHTML 1.1 the "lang" attribute has been completely replaced by "xml:lang" and its use is no longer valid.

<p lang="en" xml:lang="en">This is a paragraph in english.</p>
<p lang="es" xml:lang="es">Este es un párrafo en español.</p>

dir

This attribute indicates the direction in which the texts of the element must be read. This includes content, attribute values and tables. It has two possible values that are case-insensitive:

  • RTL: Right to left.
  • LTR: Left to right.
<q lang="he" dir="rtl">...an Hebrew quotation...</q>

accesskey (character)

Relates the element to a character key. Most browsers allow users to access the element by pressing that key while holding down the "alt" key. The activation result depends on the element's nature. For links, this action automatically follows the link, while other elements simply get the focus.

<a href="http://www.htmlquick.com/" accesskey="H">Homepage</a>

for (idref)

This attribute relates the label with the control. To work correctly, the value of this attribute must match the value of the "id" attribute in the control's element.

<label for="lfname">First name:</label> <input type="text" id="lfname" name="fname" />

Events

  • onfocus
  • onblur
  • onclick
  • ondblclick
  • onmousedown
  • onmouseup
  • onmouseover
  • onmousemove
  • onmouseout
  • onkeypress
  • onkeydown
  • onkeyup

See a complete list and information about events in HTML

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