What HTML is

Every website you've ever visited is built on HTML. It's the language that describes the content and structure of a web page — the headings, paragraphs, images, links, and buttons. Learn HTML and you can build the skeleton of any web page, which is the first real step to building for the web.

HTML describes structure, not looks

HTML's job is to say what things are: "this is a heading," "this is a paragraph," "this is a link." It is not in charge of how they look (colours, fonts, layout) — that's CSS's job, which you'll learn next. And it's not in charge of behaviour (what happens when you click) — that's JavaScript. HTML is the foundation the other two build on.

Think of building a web page like building a house: HTML is the structure (walls, rooms, doors), CSS is the decoration (paint, furniture), and JavaScript is the electricity (things that do stuff). You start with structure.

Your first taste

Here's real HTML. Press Run and watch it render into an actual page on the right:

That <h1> made a big heading; each <p> made a paragraph. You wrote structure, the browser drew it. That's the whole loop of web development, and you just did it.

Why HTML is worth learning first

• It's the foundation of everything on the web — every site, every web app.
• It's genuinely easy to start — you saw a real page render from three lines.
• It's forgiving — small mistakes usually still show something, so you can experiment freely.
• You see results instantly — change the markup, see the page change. That fast feedback makes it fun to learn.

Your turn

Your turn

1. Run the first example and watch it render.
2. Change the heading and paragraph text to your own, then run it again.
3. Add a third paragraph of your own. Notice how each

   starts on a new line.

Key points

• HTML describes the content and structure of a web page — what things ARE.
• It's not for looks (that's CSS) or behaviour (that's JavaScript) — it's the foundation both build on.
• House analogy: HTML is the structure, CSS the decoration, JavaScript the electricity.
• You write markup; the browser renders it into a page. Change it, see it change.