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Use of the DFN element type in HTML
We will discuss about <dfn> element syntax, properties and different ways of using it in HTML. And at last, we will understand why is it suggested to use <dfn> element in your HTML document. But before all this we must learn about HTML element.
HTML element is a section of an HTML document that tells the browser, how to represent the information of that section. It contains necessary information like instructions, idea of the webpage and main content.
HTML element mainly consists of three parts −
Opening tag − It marks the beginning of the HTML element and tells the browser about the starting of the content.
Closing tag − It marks the closing of the HTML element and tells the browser where it has to stop looking for content.
Content − This part contains the main information of the webpage and it lies between the opening and closing tag. Only this part of the HTML element will be visible to the user on the webpage.
DFN Element
DFN element in HTML stands for Definition element. The term inside the <dfn> element needs to be explained within the parent of the element. For e.x if <dfn> tag is defined inside a <p> tag then the definition should be defined before we get an </p> tag.
The <dfn> tag is a container tag i.e. it has both opening and ending tag. Use of <dfn> tag makes the word look different than the rest of the content. The output of <dfn> element is italicized text i.e. the term inside it will be displayed as italic text on the webpage. Although it is modifiable and you can change its behaviour by applying CSS properties on it.
We can use HTML <dfn> tag on its own but there are many attributes that can be used with <dfn> tag to make it more functional. All attributes must always be placed inside the opening tag and they will function according to the values provided to them. Let’s learn about those attributes and how we can use them with <dfn> element −
Simply using <dfn> element
It is the simplest way of using <dfn> element in HTML. As we have discussed above we just have to write the term between the opening and closing <dfn> tag and rest of the information before end of the parent tag. Below we have shown one example of simple <dfn> element.
Example
Lets consider an example –
<!DOCTYPE html> <html> <head> <title>DFN Element</title> </head> <body> <p><dfn>DFN</dfn> element is used to identify a term that is going to be described within the content.</p> </body> </html>
With the abbreviation tag (<abbr>)
Abbreviation tag is used to represent abbreviation of a longer word or phrase. Content written between opening and closing abbreviation tag displays with dotted underline on the browser.
It has a title attribute where you can write any content related to the word or phrase and it will pop up when you will hover over the word or phrase between <abbr> tags. In case of <dfn> element we use <abbr> element as a child element and we always add this element inside <dfn> element. Below is the example of <abbr> tag inside <dfn> tag.
Example
<!DOCTYPE html> <html> <head> <title>DFN Element</title> </head> <body> <p><dfn><abbr title="Defnition">DFN</abbr></dfn> element is used to identify a term that is going to be described within the content.</p> </body> </html>
With the title attribute
Title attribute is one of the most useful attribute that we can use with <dfn> element. The title attribute must be placed inside opening <dfn> tag. The title attribute contains the meaning of the word that we have written between <dfn> tags and pops up the information on the webpage whenever we moves cursor over that word. Below is the example of how we use title attribute in <dfn> element.
Example
<!DOCTYPE html> <html> <head> <title>DFN Element</title> </head> <body> <p><dfn title="Definition">DFN</dfn> element is used to identify a term that is going to be described within the content.</p> </body> </html>
Use of DFN Element
We use element in HTML to indicate the term that is being defined in the document. Content written between element gets different styling in HTML which is somewhat similar to italicized text. The question that comes in mind after this is that why don’t we use italic tag instead when we are getting the same result from both the tags. There are different answers to this question.
In case of <dfn> element default styling of the text is italic but we can change it by applying CSS properties while in italic tag we cannot use any CSS property.
<dfn> element allows us to use number of attributes inside it to increase its functionality while in italic tag we cannot use any such attributes
One of the major reason why we use <dfn> tag instead of italic tag is SEO. SEO stands for Search engine optimization. It helps in improving the website so that whenever someone search for that product or product with similarity it will be suggested first. It will benefit as more people who are actual target audience will be able to see the website. In this
Conclusion
To conclude, The DFN element type is a useful for HTML authors to define terms or phrases in their documents. It can be used to help improve the accessibility of webpages by providing definitions and explanations of words or concepts that may be unfamiliar to readers. Additionally, it provides an easy way for search engines to recognize important keywords and phrases on a page, allowing them to index pages more accurately. Overall, the use of the DFN element type can provide many benefits for both users and developers.
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