A CSS pseudo-element is a keyword added to a selector that lets you style a specific part of the selected element/ elements.
For example, it can be used to:
-style the first letter, or line, of an element
-insert content before, or after, the content of an element
Syntax:
The syntax of pseudo-elements:
selector::pseudo-element {
property:value;
}ALL CSS PSEUDO-ELEMENTS:
::first-letter
::first-line
::before
::after
::selection
The ::first-line Pseudo-element:
The ::first-line pseudo-element is used to add a special style to the first line of a text.
The following example formats the first line of the text in all <p> elements:
<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>
<head>
<style>
p::first-line {
color: blue;
font-variant: small-caps;
}
</style>
</head>
<body>
<p>You can use the ::first-line pseudo-element to add a special effect to the first line of a text. Some more text. And even more, and more, and more, and more, and more, and more, and more, and more, and more, and more, and more, and more.</p>
</body>
</html>Output:
Note: The ::first-line pseudo-element can only by applied to block-level elements.
The following properties apply to the ::first-line pseudo-element:
- font properties
- color properties
- background properties
- word-spacing
- letter-spacing
- text-decoration
- vertical-align
- text-transform
- line-height
- clear
The ::first-letter Pseudo-element:
The ::first-letter pseudo-element is used to add a special style to the first letter of a text.
The following example formats the first letter of the text in all <p> elements:
<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>
<head>
<style>
p::first-letter {
color: lightblue;
font-size: xx-large;
}
</style>
</head>
<body>
<p>You can use the ::first-letter pseudo-element to add a special effect to the first character of a text!</p>
</body>
</html>
Output:
Note: ::first-letter pseudo-element can only be applied to block-level elements.
The following properties apply to the ::first-letter pseudo- element:
- font properties
- color properties
- background properties
- margin properties
- padding properties
- border properties
- text-decoration
- vertical-align (only if “float” is “none”)
- text-transform
- line-height
- float
- clear
Multiple Pseudo-elements:
Several pseudo-elements can also be combined. In the following example, the first letter of a paragraph will be red, in an xx-large font size. The rest of the first line will be blue, and in small-caps. The rest of the paragraph will be the default font size and color:
<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>
<head>
<style>
p::first-letter {
color: #ff0000;
font-size: xx-large;
}
p::first-line {
color: #0000ff;
font-variant: small-caps;
}
</style>
</head>
<body>
<p>You can combine the ::first-letter and ::first-line pseudo-elements to add a special effect to the first letter and the first line of a text!</p>
</body>
</html>Output:
CSS – The ::before Pseudo-element:
The ::before pseudo-element can be used to insert some content before the content of an element.
The following example inserts an image before the content of each <h1> element:
<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>
<head>
<style>
h1::before {
content: url(siamesecat.jpg);
}
</style>
</head>
<body>
<h1>This is a heading</h1>
<p>The ::before pseudo-element inserts content before the content of an element.</p>
<h1>This is a heading</h1>
<p><b>Note:</b> IE8 supports the content property only if a !DOCTYPE is specified.</p>
</body>
</html>Output:
CSS – The ::after Pseudo-element:
The ::after pseudo-element can be used to insert some content after the content of an element.
The following example inserts an image after the content of each <h1> element:
<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>
<head>
<style>
h1::after {
content: url(siamesecat.jpg);
}
</style>
</head>
<body>
<h1>This is a heading</h1>
<p>The ::after pseudo-element inserts content after the content of an element.</p>
<h1>This is a heading</h1>
<p><b>Note:</b> IE8 supports the content property only if a !DOCTYPE is specified.</p>
</body>
</html>Output:
CSS – The ::selection Pseudo-element:
The ::selection pseudo-element matches the portion of an element that is selected by a user.
The following CSS properties can be applied to: ::selection: color, background, cursor, and outline.
The following example makes the selected text red on a yellow background:
<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>
<head>
<style>
::-moz-selection { /* Code for Firefox */
color: red;
background: yellow;
}
::selection {
color: red;
background: yellow;
}
</style>
</head>
<body>
<h1>Select some text on this page:</h1>
<p>This is a paragraph.</p>
<div>This is some text in a div element.</div>
<p><strong>Note:</strong> ::selection is not supported in Internet Explorer 8 and earlier versions.</p>
<p><strong>Note:</strong> Firefox supports an alternative, the ::-moz-selection property.</p>
</body>
</html>Output:
Enjoy coding!