Understanding HTML Tags and Elements
1. What HTML is and why we use it
HTML stands for HyperText Markup Language.
HTML is not a programming language.
It’s a markup language, which means it’s used to structure content.
We use HTML to:
Create the structure of a webpage
Tell the browser what is a heading, paragraph, image, link, etc.
Build the basic skeleton of any website
2. What an HTML tag is
An HTML tag is a keyword wrapped in angle brackets (< >) that tells the browser what something is.
Example:
<p>
4. What an HTML element means
An HTML element is the complete set:
Opening tag
Content
Closing tag
Example:
<h1>Welcome</h1>
This entire line is one HTML element, not just the tag.
5. Self-closing (void) elements
Some HTML elements don’t need a closing tag.
These are called self-closing or void elements.
Examples:
<br>
<img>
<input>
<hr>
Why?
Because they don’t wrap content — they just do one job.
Example:
<img src="photo.jpg">
There’s nothing to close because there’s no content inside.
6. Block-level vs inline elements
Block-level elements:
Start on a new line
Take up full width
Examples:
<div>
<p>
<h1>
Think of block elements as big boxes stacked vertically.
Inline elements:
Stay in the same line
Take only needed space
Examples:
<span>
<a>
<strong>
Inline elements are like words inside a sentence.
7. Commonly used HTML tags
Some tags you’ll see all the time:
<html>– root of the document<head>– page info (title, links)<body>– visible content<h1>to<h6>– headings<p>– paragraph<a>– link<img>– image<div>– container<span>– inline container<ul>,<ol>,<li>– lists