HTML <small> Tag
Topic: HTML5 Tags ReferencePrev|Next
Description
The <small> tag decreases the text font size by one size smaller than a document's base font size; for example, from medium to small, or from x-large to large. Each nested <small> element will further decrease the size by one size smaller.
The following table summarizes the usages context and the version history of this tag.
| Placement: | Inline |
|---|---|
| Content: | Inline and text |
| Start/End Tag: | Start tag: required, End tag: required |
| Version: | HTML 3.2, 4, 4.01, 5 |
Usage Notes
The
<small>tag is only intended for short runs of text. It should not be used for extended spans of text, such as multiple paragraphs, or sections of text.It doesn't convey any semantic information about the enclosed text — it simply renders the text in a "small" font.
However, this element is not deprecated and also valid in HTML5, but is used less frequently now, as there are better methods for controlling text size such as CSS
font-sizeproperty.
Syntax
The basic syntax of the <small> tag is given with:
The example below shows the <small> tag in action.
Example
Try this code »<p>It's <small>small <small>smaller <small>smallest</small></small></small></p>
<!--Alternative-->
<p style="font-size:small;">This is a sample text.</p>Tag-Specific Attributes
The <small> tag doesn't have any specific attribute.
Global Attributes
Like all other HTML tags, the <small> tag supports the global attributes in HTML5.
Event Attributes
The <small> tag also supports the event attributes in HTML5.
Browser Compatibility
The <small> tag is supported in all major modern browsers.
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Basic Support—
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Further Reading
See tutorial on: HTML Text Formatting, CSS Fonts.
Related tag: <big>.
