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CSS CSS Basics (2014) Understanding Values and Units Percentages

Posted by vikrant kaushal
.a{fill-rule:evenodd;}techdegree
vikrant kaushal
Front End Web Development Techdegree Student 2,558 Points

Percentages and relation

what does Mr.Guil mean by " where the size of the text is directly related to the font size of its parent " he said that in pervious video also - thank you

1 Answer

Cameron Childres
Cameron Childres
11,820 Points
Cameron Childres
Cameron Childres
11,820 Points

Hi Vikrant,

When you use a percentage to set font size of an element it uses the font size of its parent element as a base for the calculation. There's a good example on the MDN documentation for percentage:

<div style="font-size:18px;">
  <p>Full-size text (18px)</p>
  <p><span style="font-size:50%;">50% (9px)</span></p>
  <p><span style="font-size:200%;">200% (36px)</span></p>
</div>
  • The parent element (div) has a font size of 18px.
  • The first line inherits this and remains at 18px.
  • The next line uses a value of 50%; 50% of 18px is 9px.
  • The final line uses a value of 200%; 200% of 18px is 36px.

I hope this helps! Let me know if you have any questions.