{{CSSRef}}
The <string>
CSS data type represents a sequence of characters. Strings are used in numerous CSS properties, such as {{CSSxRef("content")}}
, {{CSSxRef("font-family")}}
, and {{CSSxRef("quotes")}}
.
Syntax
The <string>
data type is composed of any number of Unicode characters surrounded by either double ("
) or single ('
) quotes.
Most characters can be represented literally. All characters can also be represented with their respective Unicode code points in hexadecimal, in which case they are preceded by a backslash (\
). For example, \22
represents a double quote, \27
a single quote ('
), and \A9
the copyright symbol (©
).
Importantly, certain characters which would otherwise be invalid can be escaped with a backslash. These include double quotes when used inside a double-quoted string, single quotes when used inside a single-quoted string, and the backslash itself. For example, \\
will create a single backslash.
To output new lines, you must escape them with a line feed character such as \A
or \00000A
. In your code, however, strings can span multiple lines, in which case each new line must be escaped with a \
as the last character of the line.
However, to get new lines, you must also set the {{cssxref("white-space")}}
property to appropriate value.
Note:
{{glossary("character reference", "Character references")}}
(such as
or—
) cannot be used in a CSS<string>
.
Examples
Examples of valid strings
/* Basic strings */
"This string is demarcated by double quotes."
'This string is demarcated by single quotes.'
/* Character escaping */
"This is a string with \" an escaped double quote."
"This string also has \22 an escaped double quote."
'This is a string with \' an escaped single quote.'
'This string also has \27 an escaped single quote.'
"This is a string with \\ an escaped backslash."
/* New line in a string */
"This string has a \Aline break in it."
/* String spanning two lines of code (these two strings will have identical output) */
"A really long \
awesome string"
"A really long awesome string"
Specifications
{{Specifications}}
Browser compatibility
{{Compat}}