Headings, paragraphs and text

Headings: the outline of the page

HTML has six heading levels, from <h1> to <h6>. Use one <h1> for the main title of the page. Use <h2> for big sections and <h3> for parts inside an <h2> section. Do not skip levels, for example jumping from <h2> straight to <h4>.

<h1>Class 12 Board Results 2026</h1>

<h2>How to check your result</h2>
<p>Enter your roll number and date of birth.</p>

<h2>Re-checking</h2>
<h3>Who can apply</h3>
<p>Any student who is not happy with a mark.</p>
<h3>Fees</h3>
<p>Rs 500 per subject.</p>

Paragraphs and whitespace

Wrap each paragraph in <p>. Whitespace means spaces, tabs and new lines. The browser collapses whitespace: any run of spaces and new lines becomes a single space. So pressing Enter in your code does not start a new line on the page.

The <br> element forces a line break inside text where the line matters, such as a postal address or the lines of a poem. Use it sparingly. Do not use <br><br> to make space between paragraphs; use separate <p> elements and CSS margin instead.

Meaning, not looks: strong and em

Search engines and assistive tools read the tag, not the look. Choose the tag for its meaning. If you only want bold text for decoration, use CSS (font-weight) instead.

Quotes and code

<blockquote cite="https://www.example.org/speech">
  <p>Education is the most powerful tool to change a life.</p>
</blockquote>

<p>Use the <code>&lt;p&gt;</code> tag for paragraphs.</p>

<pre><code>Name:   Asha
Marks:  92</code></pre>

<blockquote> holds a long quote from another source, and <q> holds a short quote inside a sentence. <code> marks a piece of code. <pre> (preformatted) keeps every space and line break exactly as you typed it, so it is the exception to whitespace collapsing.

Character entities

Some characters have a special job in HTML. A < starts a tag and an & starts an entity. An entity is a short code that shows a character safely. Write &lt; for <, &gt; for >, and &amp; for &.