HTML / HTML Tags

HTML <Cite> Tag

Dec 12, 2022
2 min read
HTML cite Tag

Definition

The <cite> tag defines the title of a piece of creative work and must contain the title of that piece of work.

Example

<p>In the words of <cite>Charles Bukowski</cite> -
<q>An intellectual says a simple thing in a hard way. 
An artist says a hard thing in a simple way.</q></p>

In the words of Charles Bukowski - An intellectual says a simple thing in a hard way. An artist says a hard thing in a simple way.

Usage

  • The <cite> element must be used for a creative work, which according the the HTML5 specification, includes:

    A book, a paper, an essay, a poem, a score, a song, a script, a film, a TV show, a game, a sculpture, a painting, a theatre production, a play, an opera, a musical, an exhibition, a legal case report, a computer program, a web site, a web page, a blog post or comment, a forum post or comment, a tweet, a written or oral statement, etc.

  • The <cite> element must include the title of the work, author name, URL reference, or an abbreviated reference in a form that adheres to accepted conventions.
  • A closing tag must be used.
  • Usage and examples of the <cite> element with <blockquote> elements can be found here.
  • Browsers by default apply italic styling to <cite> elements. You can override this using the CSS font-style property should you wish.

Attributes

The <cite> element only supports the Global Attributes.

Best Practices

  • The <cite> element should not be used for quotes.

Specification

Browser Support

Desktop

ChromeEdgeFirefoxIEOperaSafari
YesYesYesYesYesYes

Mobile

Android WebviewChrome AndroidFirefox AndroidOpera AndroidiOS SafariSamsung Internet
YesYesYesYesYesYes