What Is A Pseudo Class In CSS?

Table of contents

• Introduction
• What is a Pseudo-Class?
• Common Pseudo-Classes
• Advantages of Using Pseudo-Classes
• Conclusion

Introduction

CSS (Cascading Style Sheets) defines the visual presentation of a website by layering over HTML.Simply put if HTML is the skeleton, then CSS is the skin upon it.

Pseudo-classes allow a developer to apply different css styles depending on user actions and page changes.

What is a Pseudo-Class?

A pseudo-class is a keyword added to selectors that specifies a special state of the selected elements. Pseudo-classes are used to define the styling of elements when they are in a specific condition, such as when a user hovers over a link, or when a form field is focused.

Syntax

The syntax for a pseudo-class is simple. It involves adding a colon (:) followed by the pseudo-class keyword to a CSS selector. For example:

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01: selector:pseudo-class {
02:   property: value;
03: }

Common Pseudo-Classes

There are many pseudo-classes depending on the state or user action you want to target.

Examples

:hover

The :hover pseudo-class applies a style when the user hovers over an element, typically used for links.

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01: a:hover {
02:   color: red;
03: }

This example will show a hyper link in red when a user hovers over it.

:focus

The :focus pseudo-class applies a style when an element, such as an input field, gains focus, thus for example, when a user clicks into it.

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01: input:focus {
02:   border-color: blue;
03: }

:nth-child()

The :nth-child() pseudo-class selects elements based on their position in a group of siblings, say in a table or list.

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01: li:nth-child(odd) {
02:   background-color: #f0f0f0;
03: }

:first-child and :last-child

The :first-child and :last-child pseudo-classes target the first and last child elements of their parent, respectively.

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01: p:first-child {
02:   font-weight: bold;
03: }
04: 
05: p:last-child {
06:   font-style: italic;
07: }

Advantages of Using Pseudo-Classes

• Enhanced User Experience: Pseudo-classes can provide feedback to users through interactive elements like buttons and links.
• Cleaner HTML: By using pseudo-classes, developers can avoid adding additional classes or IDs to HTML elements solely for styling purposes.
• Powerful Selectors: Pseudo-classes enable more precise and complex selections, allowing for advanced styling scenarios.

Conclusion

Without Pseudo-classes developers will likely have to depend on Javascript to achieve some styling effects.

Here is another article you might like 😊 "What Is A Docstring?"