HTML Paragraphs

The <p> tag in HTML signifies a paragraph. Enclosed within the opening <p> and closing </p> tags, any content is recognized as a paragraph. As a block-level element, a new paragraph inherently starts on a fresh line, with browsers intuitively adding space before and after a paragraph for enhanced readability.

Syntax:

<p> Content </p>

Properties of the paragraph Tag

  • The browser reduces multiple spaces added by users to a single space.
  • If a user adds multiple lines, the browser compresses them into a single line.
  • By default, the display of the paragraph element is set to “block,” meaning each new paragraph is placed on a new line. This behavior can be modified using CSS.

Example 1: The example explains the HTML <p> tag.

HTML
<!DOCTYPE html>
<html lang="en">

<head>
    <meta charset="UTF-8">
    <meta name="viewport" 
          content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1.0">
    <title>The p tag</title>
</head>

<body>
    <p>A Computer Science portal for Beginner.</p>
    <p>It contains well written, well thought articles.</p>
</body>

</html>

Output:

Multiple p Tags

Example 2: This example explains the HTML <p> tag having multiple lines.

HTML
<!DOCTYPE html>
<html lang="en">

<head>
    <meta charset="UTF-8">
    <meta name="viewport" 
          content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1.0">
    <title>HTML p tag</title>
</head>

<body>
    <p>
        This paragraph has multiple lines.
        But HTML reduces them to a single line,
        omitting the carriage return we have used.
    </p>
    <p>
        This paragraph has multiple spaces.
        But HTML reduces them all to a single
        space, omitting the extra spaces and 
          line we have used.
    </p>
</body>

</html>

Output:

p tag with multiple lines

The <br> tag

The HTML <br> tag element creates a line break, giving you a new line without starting a new paragraph. Use <br> when you want to move to the next line without beginning a whole new paragraph.

Syntax:

 <br>

Example: This example explains the <br> tag inside the <p> tag to add the line-break.

HTML
<!DOCTYPE html>
<html lang="en">

<head>
    <meta charset="UTF-8">
    <meta name="viewport" 
          content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1.0">
    <title>HTML paragraph
    </title>
</head>

<body>
    <p>
        This paragraph has multiple
        <br />lines. But HTML reduces them
        <br />to a single line, omitting
        <br />the carriage return we have used.
    </p>
</body>

</html>

Output:

Use of br tag inside the p tag

The <hr> tag

The HTML <hr> tag is used to create a horizontal rule or line, visually separating content on a webpage. Use <hr> when you want to insert a horizontal line to signify a division between sections or elements, providing a clear visual break in the page.

Syntax: 

 <hr>

Example: In this example we will use the <hr> tag with an example by using <p> tag also.

HTML
<!DOCTYPE html>
<html lang="en">

<head>
    <meta charset="UTF-8">
    <meta name="viewport" 
          content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1.0">
    <title>HTML Horizontal Rule Example</title>
</head>

<body>
    <h1>
        Welcome to My Website
    </h1>

    <p>
        w3wiki is a leading
        platform that provides computer
        science resources and coding challenges
    </p>

    <hr>

    <p>
        w3wiki is a leading platform
        that provides computer science resources
        and coding challenges
    </p>
</body>

</html>

Output:

Output

Align attribute

The <p> tag specifically supports the alignment attribute and allows us to align our paragraphs in left, right, or center alignment. 

Syntax: 

<p align="value">

Example: This example explains the align attribute to align the content in the <p> tag.

HTML
<!DOCTYPE html>
<html lang="en">

<head>
    <meta charset="UTF-8">
    <meta name="viewport" 
          content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1.0">
    <title>HTML paragraph
    </title>
</head>

<body>
    <p align="center">
        Welcome Beginner
    </p>
    <p align="left">
        A Computer Science portal for Beginner.
    </p>
    <p align="right">
        It contains well written, well thought articles.
    </p>
</body>


</html>

Output:

Use of align attribute in p tag

The <pre> tag

The HTML <pre> tag is used for pre-formatted text. It keeps the original spaces and line breaks exactly as they are in the code. When you use <pre>, the text appears in a fixed-width font, preserving the formatting and layout just as it looks in the HTML code.

Syntax:

<pre> Content </pre> 

Example: This example explains the use of the <pre> tag in the <p> tag.

HTML
<!DOCTYPE html>
<html lang="en">

<head>
    <meta charset="UTF-8">
    <meta name="viewport" 
          content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1.0">
    <title>HTML paragraph
    </title>
</head>

<body>
    <pre>
    This paragraph has multiple
    lines. But it is displayed 
    as it is unlike the paragraph 
    tag.
   </pre>

    <pre>
    This     paragraph has multiple
    spaces. But     it is displayed 
    as it is    unlike the paragraph 
         tag.
   </pre>
</body>

</html>

Output:

Use of pre tag in the p tag

Browser Support

  • Google Chrome: 1
  • Edge: 12
  • Firefox: 1
  • Opera: 15
  • Safari: 1


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