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HTML <textarea> Tag


Example

An HTML text area:

<textarea rows="4" cols="50">
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</textarea>
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Definition and Usage

The <textarea> tag defines a multi-line text input control.

A text area can hold an unlimited number of characters, and the text renders in a fixed-width font (usually Courier).

The size of a text area can be specified by the cols and rows attributes, or even better; through CSS' height and width properties.


Browser Support

Element
<textarea> Yes Yes Yes Yes Yes

Differences Between HTML 4.01 and HTML5

HTML5 has added several new attributes.



Attributes

= New in HTML5.

Attribute Value Description
autofocus autofocus Specifies that a text area should automatically get focus when the page loads
cols number Specifies the visible width of a text area
dirname textareaname.dir Specifies that the text direction of the textarea will be submitted
disabled disabled Specifies that a text area should be disabled
form form_id Specifies one or more forms the text area belongs to
maxlength number Specifies the maximum number of characters allowed in the text area
name text Specifies a name for a text area
placeholder text Specifies a short hint that describes the expected value of a text area
readonly readonly Specifies that a text area should be read-only
required required Specifies that a text area is required/must be filled out
rows number Specifies the visible number of lines in a text area
wrap hard
soft
Specifies how the text in a text area is to be wrapped when submitted in a form

Global Attributes

The <textarea> tag also supports the Global Attributes in HTML.


Event Attributes

The <textarea> tag also supports the Event Attributes in HTML.


Related Pages

HTML DOM reference: Textarea Object

CSS Tutorial: Styling Forms


Default CSS Settings

None.