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Style whiteSpace Property

< Style Object

Example

Specify that the text in the <div> element will never wrap:

document.getElementById("myDIV").style.whiteSpace = "nowrap";
Try it Yourself »

Definition and Usage

The whiteSpace property sets or returns how to handle tabs, line breaks and whitespace in a text.


Browser Support

Internet Explorer Firefox Opera Google Chrome Safari

The whiteSpace property is supported in all major browsers.


Syntax

Return the whiteSpace property:

object.style.whiteSpace

Set the whiteSpace property:

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

Property Values

Value Description
normal Sequences of whitespace will collapse into a single whitespace. Text will wrap when necessary. This is default
nowrap Sequences of whitespace will collapse into a single whitespace. Text will never wrap to the next line. The text continues on the same line until a <br> tag is encountered
pre Whitespace is preserved by the browser. Text will only wrap on line breaks. Acts like the <pre> tag in HTML
pre-line Sequences of whitespace will collapse into a single whitespace. Text will wrap when necessary, and on line breaks
pre-wrap Whitespace is preserved by the browser. Text will wrap when necessary, and on line breaks
initial Sets this property to its default value. Read about initial
inherit Inherits this property from its parent element. Read about inherit

Technical Details

Default Value: normal 
Return Value: A String, representing how white-space inside an element is handled
CSS Version CSS1

More Examples

Example

Return the whiteSpace property

alert(document.getElementById("myDiv").style.whiteSpace);
Try it Yourself »

Related Pages

CSS tutorial: CSS Text

CSS reference: white-space property


< Style Object