Style whiteSpace attribute

Definition and usage

whiteSpace How to set or return how tabs, line breaks, and spaces are handled in text.

See also:

CSS Tutorial:CSS Text

CSS Reference Manual:white-space attribute

Example

Example 1

Specify that the text within the <div> element should never wrap:

document.getElementById("myDIV").style.whiteSpace = "nowrap";

Try it yourself

Example 2

Return the whiteSpace attribute:

alert(document.getElementById("myDiv").style.whiteSpace);

Try it yourself

Syntax

Return the whiteSpace attribute:

object.style.whiteSpace

Set the whiteSpace attribute:

object.style.whiteSpace = "normal|nowrap|pre|initial|inherit"

Attribute value

Value Description
normal

Whitespace sequences are collapsed into a single space.

Text will wrap as needed. Default.
nowrap

Whitespace sequences are collapsed into a single space.

Text will never wrap to the next line. Text continues on the same line until the <br> tag is encountered.
pre

Whitespace is preserved by the browser.

Text will only wrap at line breaks. Similar to the <pre> tag in HTML.
pre-line

Whitespace sequences are collapsed into a single space.

Text will wrap as needed and at line breaks.
pre-wrap

Whitespace is preserved by the browser.

Text will wrap as needed and at line breaks.
initial Set this attribute to its default value. See also initial.
inherit This attribute inherits from its parent element. See also inherit.

Technical details

Default value: normal
Return value: A string that indicates how to handle whitespace within elements.
CSS Version: CSS1

Browser Support

Chrome Edge Firefox Safari Opera
Chrome Edge Firefox Safari Opera
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