HTML 5 <option> Tag
The HTML <option> tag is used for defining option items within a list.
This element can be used in conjunction with the <select> or <datalist> elements.
Also see <optgroup> tag for grouping your option items.
Attributes
HTML tags can contain one or more attributes. Attributes are added to a tag to provide the browser with more information about how the tag should appear or behave. Attributes consist of a name and a value separated by an equals (=) sign, with the value surrounded by double quotes. Here's an example, style="color:black;".
There are 3 kinds of attributes that you can add to your HTML tags: Element-specific, global, and event handler content attributes.
The attributes that you can add to this tag are listed below.
Element-Specific Attributes
The following table shows the attributes that are specific to this tag/element.
| Attribute | Description |
|---|---|
| disabled | Disables the input control. The button won't accept changes from the user. It also cannot receive focus and will be skipped when tabbing.
This is a boolean attribute. If the attribute is present, its value must either be the empty string or a value that is an ASCII case-insensitive match for the attribute's canonical name, with no leading or trailing whitespace (i.e. either Possible values:
|
| label | Specifies a label to be used as an alternative to the option item's contents. Useful if you'd prefer a shorter, more concise label. |
| selected | Specifies that this option will be pre-selected when the user first loads the page.
This is a boolean attribute. If the attribute is present, its value must either be the empty string or a value that is an ASCII case-insensitive match for the attribute's canonical name, with no leading or trailing whitespace (i.e. either Possible values:
|
| value | Specifies the initial value of the option item. |
Global Attributes
The following attributes are standard across all HTML 5 tags (although the tabindex attribute does not apply to dialog elements).
accesskeyautocapitalizeclasscontenteditabledata-*dirdraggablehiddenidinputmodeisitemiditempropitemrefitemscopeitemtypelangpartslotspellcheckstyletabindextitletranslate
For a full explanation of these attributes, see HTML 5 global attributes.
Event Handler Content Attributes
Event handler content attributes enable you to invoke a script from within your HTML. The script is invoked when a certain "event" occurs. Each event handler content attribute deals with a different event.
onabortonauxclickonbluroncanceloncanplayoncanplaythroughonchangeonclickoncloseoncontextmenuoncopyoncuechangeoncutondblclickondragondragendondragenterondragexitondragleaveondragoverondragstartondropondurationchangeonemptiedonendedonerroronfocusonformdataoninputoninvalidonkeydownonkeypressonkeyuponlanguagechangeonloadonloadeddataonloadedmetadataonloadstartonmousedownonmouseenteronmouseleaveonmousemoveonmouseoutonmouseoveronmouseuponpasteonpauseonplayonplayingonprogressonratechangeonresetonresizeonscrollonsecuritypolicyviolationonseekedonseekingonselectonslotchangeonstalledonsubmitonsuspendontimeupdateontoggleonvolumechangeonwaitingonwheel
For a full list of event handlers, see HTML 5 event handler content attributes.