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Web Development vocabulary · HTML and Markup

semantic HTML

Meaning in web development, with examples

nounCommon term

In web development, semantic HTML means: HTML that uses elements according to their meaning, such as nav, main, article and button, instead of generic div and span elements for everything.

In Turkish: anlamsal HTML, semantik HTML

How it is used

Comes up in code reviews and accessibility work: semantic HTML gives screen readers, search engines and browsers useful information for free. Its opposite is jokingly called 'div soup'.

Example sentences

  1. Replace the clickable div with a real button; semantic HTML gives you keyboard support for free.

  2. Good semantic HTML makes the page easier to style and easier to test.

Common collocations

  • semantic elements
  • semantic markup
  • landmark elements
  • div soup
  • HTMLHyperText Markup Language: the standard language for describing the structure and content of a web page, such as headings, paragraphs, links and images.
  • elementA single building block of an HTML page, such as a paragraph, image or button, usually written as an opening tag, content and a closing tag.
  • accessibilityThe practice of making websites usable by everyone, including people who are blind or deaf, have limited movement or use assistive technology.
  • screen readerSoftware that reads the content of a screen aloud or sends it to a braille display, used mainly by blind and visually impaired people.
  • headingA title for a page or section, marked up with the elements h1 to h6, where h1 is the main title and the others show lower levels.

This word in other fields

The same English word can have a different meaning in another field:

More terms: HTML and Markup

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