HTML (Hypertext Markup Language) is the standard language used to create web pages. It consists of a series of elements, each represented by a specific tag, that is used to define the structure and content of a web page.
An HTML element is a basic building block of a web page and is made up of a start tag, content, and an end tag. The start tag is the element name enclosed in angle brackets, while the end tag is the element name preceded by a forward slash. The content is the text or other elements that appear between the start and end tags.
For example, the following code creates a heading element:
<h1>This is a heading</h1>
In this example, <h1> is the start tag, </h1> is the end tag, and "This is a heading" is the content. The heading element is used to create a level 1 heading on the web page.
Another example is the paragraph element:
<p>This is a paragraph of text. It can contain multiple sentences.</p>
In this example, <p> is the start tag, </p> is the end tag, and "This is a paragraph of text. It can contain multiple sentences." is the content. The paragraph element is used to create a paragraph of text on the web page.
An HTML element can also have attributes that provide additional information about the element. An attribute is added to the start tag, and consists of a name and a value, separated by an equal sign. For example:
<img src="image.jpg" alt="A sample image">
In this example, img is an image element and src and alt are the attributes. The src the attribute specifies the URL of the image, while the alt the attribute provides alternative text for the image in case it cannot be displayed.
There are many other elements in HTML, such as lists, links, forms, tables, and more. HTML elements can be nested inside each other to create a hierarchical structure of the web page.
In summary, HTML elements are the building blocks of a web page. They are represented by a specific tag and contain content. They can also have attributes that provide additional information. Understanding and using the different HTML elements correctly is essential for creating well-structured and accessible web pages.