Understanding CSS Syntax: The Building Blocks of Style

CSS syntax is the set of rules and conventions that dictate how CSS code is written and structured. It is essential for creating effective and maintainable stylesheets.

Selector

A selector is an HTML tag at which a style will be applied.

Property

A property is a type of attribute of HTML tag. Put simply, all the HTML attributes are converted into CSS properties.

Value

Values are assigned to properties.

Syntax

selector { property : value ; }

The basic building block of CSS syntax is a rule, which consists of a selector and one or more declarations. Selectors specify which HTML elements the rule should apply to, while declarations define the style properties of those elements.

CSS syntax also includes comments, which are ignored by the browser but can be used to annotate the code and provide context to other developers. Comments are enclosed in /* */.

Other important concepts in CSS syntax include inheritance, specificity, and the cascade. Inheritance refers to the way in which style properties are inherited by child elements from their parent elements. Specificity determines which rule takes precedence when multiple rules apply to the same element. The cascade is the process by which conflicting rules are resolved based on their specificity and order in the stylesheet.

Overall, understanding CSS syntax is crucial for writing efficient, readable, and maintainable code that produces consistent and appealing visual styles for web pages.

Example

h1{color:blue;}

Output

This style block applies the color property with a value of blue.

CSS Tutorial

Properties Reference

CSS Properties Reference Guide