<var>: The Variable element
Baseline Widely available
This feature is well established and works across many devices and browser versions. It’s been available across browsers since July 2015.
The <var>
HTML element represents the name of a variable in a mathematical expression or a programming context. It's typically presented using an italicized version of the current typeface, although that behavior is browser-dependent.
Try it
Attributes
This element only includes the global attributes.
Usage notes
Related elements
Other elements that are used in contexts in which <var>
is commonly used include:
<code>
: The HTML Code element<kbd>
: The HTML Keyboard input element<samp>
: The HTML Sample Output element
If you encounter code that is mistakenly using <var>
for style purposes rather than semantic purposes, you should either use a <span>
with appropriate CSS or, an appropriate semantic element among the following:
Default style
Most browsers apply font-style
to "italic"
when rendering <var>
. This can be overridden in CSS, like this:
var {
font-style: normal;
}
Examples
Basic example
Here's a simple example, using <var>
to denote variable names in a mathematical equation.
<p>A simple equation: <var>x</var> = <var>y</var> + 2</p>
Result
Overriding the default style
Using CSS, you can override the default style for the <var>
element. In this example, variable names are rendered in bold, using Courier if it's available, otherwise it falls back to the default monospace font.
CSS
var {
font:
bold 15px "Courier",
"Courier New",
monospace;
}
HTML
<p>
The variables <var>minSpeed</var> and <var>maxSpeed</var> control the minimum
and maximum speed of the apparatus in revolutions per minute (RPM).
</p>
This HTML uses <var>
to enclose the names of two variables.
Result
Technical summary
Content categories | Flow content, phrasing content, palpable content. |
---|---|
Permitted content | Phrasing content. |
Tag omission | None, both the starting and ending tag are mandatory. |
Permitted parents | Any element that accepts phrasing content. |
Implicit ARIA role | No corresponding role |
Permitted ARIA roles | Any |
DOM interface | HTMLElement |
Specifications
Specification |
---|
HTML Standard # the-var-element |
Browser compatibility
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