Example
A paragraph with a right-to-left direction:
<p dir="rtl">Write this text right-to-left!</p>
Try it Yourself »
Definition and Usage
The dir attribute specifies the text direction of the element's content.
Browser Support
| Attribute | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| dir | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Differences Between HTML 4.01 and HTML5
In HTML5, the dir attribute can be used on any HTML element (it will validate on any HTML element. However, it is not necessarily useful).
In HTML 4.01, the dir attribute cannot be used with: <base>, <br>, <frame>, <frameset>, <hr>, <iframe>, <param>, and <script>.
Syntax
<element dir="ltr|rtl|auto">
Attribute Values
| Value | Description |
|---|---|
| ltr | Default. Left-to-right text direction |
| rtl | Right-to-left text direction |
| auto | Let the browser figure out the text direction, based on the content (only recommended if the text direction is unknown) |
Related Pages
HTML Tutorial: HTML Attributes
CSS Reference: direction property
HTML DOM Reference: HTML DOM dir Property
HTML DOM Reference: Style direction Property