Menu
×
   ❮     
HTML CSS JAVASCRIPT SQL PYTHON JAVA PHP HOW TO W3.CSS C C++ C# BOOTSTRAP REACT MYSQL JQUERY EXCEL XML DJANGO NUMPY PANDAS NODEJS R TYPESCRIPT ANGULAR GIT POSTGRESQL MONGODB ASP AI GO KOTLIN SASS VUE DSA GEN AI SCIPY AWS CYBERSECURITY DATA SCIENCE
     ❯   

CSS Tutorial

CSS HOME CSS Introduction CSS Syntax CSS Selectors CSS How To CSS Comments CSS Colors CSS Backgrounds CSS Borders CSS Margins CSS Padding CSS Height/Width CSS Box Model CSS Outline CSS Text CSS Fonts CSS Icons CSS Links CSS Lists CSS Tables CSS Display CSS Max-width CSS Position CSS Z-index CSS Overflow CSS Float CSS Inline-block CSS Align CSS Combinators CSS Pseudo-classes CSS Pseudo-elements CSS Opacity CSS Navigation Bar CSS Dropdowns CSS Image Gallery CSS Image Sprites CSS Attr Selectors CSS Forms CSS Counters CSS Website Layout CSS Units CSS Specificity CSS !important CSS Math Functions

CSS Advanced

CSS Rounded Corners CSS Border Images CSS Backgrounds CSS Colors CSS Color Keywords CSS Gradients CSS Shadows CSS Text Effects CSS Web Fonts CSS 2D Transforms CSS 3D Transforms CSS Transitions CSS Animations CSS Tooltips CSS Style Images CSS Image Reflection CSS object-fit CSS object-position CSS Masking CSS Buttons CSS Pagination CSS Multiple Columns CSS User Interface CSS Variables CSS @property CSS Box Sizing CSS Media Queries CSS MQ Examples CSS Flexbox

CSS Responsive

RWD Intro RWD Viewport RWD Grid View RWD Media Queries RWD Images RWD Videos RWD Frameworks RWD Templates

CSS Grid

Grid Intro Grid Container Grid Item

CSS SASS

SASS Tutorial

CSS Examples

CSS Templates CSS Examples CSS Editor CSS Snippets CSS Quiz CSS Exercises CSS Website CSS Syllabus CSS Interview Prep CSS Bootcamp CSS Certificate

CSS References

CSS Reference CSS Selectors CSS Combinators CSS Pseudo-classes CSS Pseudo-elements CSS At-rules CSS Functions CSS Reference Aural CSS Web Safe Fonts CSS Animatable CSS Units CSS PX-EM Converter CSS Colors CSS Color Values CSS Default Values CSS Browser Support

CSS Combinators


CSS Combinators

A combinator is something that explains the relationship between the selectors.

A CSS selector can contain more than one simple selector. Between the simple selectors, we can include a combinator.

There are four different combinators in CSS:

  • Descendant combinator (space)
  • Child combinator (>)
  • Next sibling combinator (+)
  • Subsequent-sibling combinator (~)

Descendant Combinator

The descendant combinator matches all elements that are descendants of a specified element.

The following example selects all <p> elements inside <div> elements: 

Example

div p {
  background-color: yellow;
}
Try it Yourself »

Child Combinator (>)

The child combinator selects all elements that are the children of a specified element.

The following example selects all <p> elements that are children of a <div> element:

Example

div > p {
  background-color: yellow;
}
Try it Yourself »


Next Sibling Combinator (+)

The next sibling combinator is used to select an element that is directly after another specific element.

Sibling elements must have the same parent element, and "adjacent" means "immediately following".

The following example selects the first <p> element that are placed immediately after <div> elements:

Example

div + p {
  background-color: yellow;
}
Try it Yourself »

Subsequent-sibling Combinator (~)

The subsequent-sibling combinator selects all elements that are next siblings of a specified element.

The following example selects all <p> elements that are next siblings of <div> elements: 

Example

div ~ p {
  background-color: yellow;
}
Try it Yourself »

Test Yourself With Exercises

Exercise:

Change the color of all <p> elements, that are descendants of <div> elements, to "red".

<style>
 {
  color: red;
}
</style>

<body>

<div>
  <p>This is a paragraph.</p>
  <p>This is a paragraph.</p>
</div>
<p>This is a paragraph.</p>
<p>This is a paragraph.</p>

</body>

Start the Exercise


CSS Combinators Reference

For a complete list of all CSS combinators, visit our CSS Combinators Reference.


×

Contact Sales

If you want to use W3Schools services as an educational institution, team or enterprise, send us an e-mail:
[email protected]

Report Error

If you want to report an error, or if you want to make a suggestion, send us an e-mail:
[email protected]

W3Schools is optimized for learning and training. Examples might be simplified to improve reading and learning. Tutorials, references, and examples are constantly reviewed to avoid errors, but we cannot warrant full correctness of all content. While using W3Schools, you agree to have read and accepted our terms of use, cookie and privacy policy.

Copyright 1999-2024 by Refsnes Data. All Rights Reserved. W3Schools is Powered by W3.CSS.