Markdown Syntax
Let’s face it: Writing content for the web is tiresome. WYSIWYG editors help alleviate this task, but they generally result in horrible code, or worse yet, ugly web pages.
Markdown is a better way to write HTML, without all the complexities and ugliness that usually accompanies it.
Some of the key benefits are:
- Markdown is simple to learn, with minimal extra characters so it’s also quicker to write content.
- Less chance of errors when writing in Markdown.
- Produces valid HTML output.
- Keeps the content and the visual display separate, so you cannot mess up the look of your site.
- Write in any text editor or Markdown application you like.
- Markdown is a joy to use!
John Gruber, the author of Markdown, puts it like this:
The overriding design goal for Markdown’s formatting syntax is to make it as readable as possible. The idea is that a Markdown-formatted document should be publishable as-is, as plain text, without looking like it’s been marked up with tags or formatting instructions. While Markdown’s syntax has been influenced by several existing text-to-HTML filters, the single biggest source of inspiration for Markdown’s syntax is the format of plain text email.
John Gruber
Tip
Bookmark this page for easy future reference!
Standard and Extensions
If not otherwise noted, the shown examples adhere to the CommonMark standard. In addition the theme supports the following extensions that can be activated in your hugo.toml
or are built into the theme:
Paragraphs
In Markdown your content usually spans the whole available document width. This is called a block. Blocks are always separated by whitespace to their adjacent blocks in the resulting document.
Any text not starting with a special sign is written as normal, plain text paragraph block and must be separated to its adjacent blocks by empty lines.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, graecis denique ei vel, at duo primis mandamus.
Et legere ocurreret pri, animal tacimates complectitur ad cum. Cu eum inermis inimicus efficiendi. Labore officiis his ex, soluta officiis concludaturque ei qui, vide sensibus vim ad.
Result
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, graecis denique ei vel, at duo primis mandamus.
Et legere ocurreret pri, animal tacimates complectitur ad cum. Cu eum inermis inimicus efficiendi. Labore officiis his ex, soluta officiis concludaturque ei qui, vide sensibus vim ad.
Headings
A good idea is to structure your content using headings and subheadings. HTML-headings from h1
through h6
are constructed with a #
for each level.
In Hugo you usually don’t use h1
as this is generated by your theme and you should only have one such element in a document.
# h1 Heading
## h2 Heading
### h3 Heading
#### h4 Heading
##### h5 Heading
###### h6 Heading
Result
h1 Heading
h2 Heading
h3 Heading
h4 Heading
h5 Heading
h6 Heading
Horizontal Rules
To further structure your content you can add horizontal rules. They create a “thematic break” between paragraph blocks. In Markdown, you can create it with three consecutive dashes ---
.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, graecis denique ei vel, at duo primis mandamus.
---
Et legere ocurreret pri, animal tacimates complectitur ad cum. Cu eum inermis inimicus efficiendi. Labore officiis his ex, soluta officiis concludaturque ei qui, vide sensibus vim ad.
Result
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, graecis denique ei vel, at duo primis mandamus.
Et legere ocurreret pri, animal tacimates complectitur ad cum. Cu eum inermis inimicus efficiendi. Labore officiis his ex, soluta officiis concludaturque ei qui, vide sensibus vim ad.
Blockquotes
Quotations
For quoting blocks of content from another source within your document add >
before any text you want to quote.
Blockquotes can also be nested.
> Donec massa lacus, ultricies a ullamcorper in, fermentum sed augue. Nunc augue, aliquam non hendrerit ac, commodo vel nisi.
>
> > Sed adipiscing elit vitae augue consectetur a gravida nunc vehicula. Donec auctor odio non est accumsan facilisis. Aliquam id turpis in dolor tincidunt mollis ac eu diam.
>
> Mauris sit amet ligula egestas, feugiat metus tincidunt, luctus libero. Donec congue finibus tempor. Vestibulum aliquet sollicitudin erat, ut aliquet purus posuere luctus.
Result
Donec massa lacus, ultricies a ullamcorper in, fermentum sed augue. Nunc augue, aliquam non hendrerit ac, commodo vel nisi.
Sed adipiscing elit vitae augue consectetur a gravida nunc vehicula. Donec auctor odio non est accumsan facilisis. Aliquam id turpis in dolor tincidunt mollis ac eu diam.
Mauris sit amet ligula egestas, feugiat metus tincidunt, luctus libero. Donec congue finibus tempor. Vestibulum aliquet sollicitudin erat, ut aliquet purus posuere luctus.
GitHub Alerts
GFM Since Hugo 0.132.0 GitHub alerts are also supported. Please note, that coloring and icons of severities may defer between GitHub and this theme.
If you are in need of more advanced options to style your alerts, like icons, use the notice shortcode.
> [!CAUTION]
> Advises about risks or negative outcomes of certain actions.
> [!IMPORTANT]
> Key information users need to know to achieve their goal.
> [!INFO]
> Information that users <ins>_might_</ins> find interesting.
> [!NOTE]
> Useful information that users should know, even when skimming content.
> [!TIP]
> Helpful advice for doing things better or more easily.
> [!WARNING]
> Urgent info that needs immediate user attention to avoid problems.
Result
Caution
Advises about risks or negative outcomes of certain actions.
Important
Key information users need to know to achieve their goal.
Info
Information that users might find interesting.
Note
Useful information that users should know, even when skimming content.
Tip
Helpful advice for doing things better or more easily.
Warning
Urgent info that needs immediate user attention to avoid problems.
Obsidian Callouts
Obsidian Since Hugo 0.134.0 Obsidian callouts are also supported. Which enables configurable title text and expand/collapse.
If you are in need of more advanced options to style your alerts, like icons, use the notice shortcode.
> [!tip] Callouts can have custom titles
> Like this one.
> [!tip] Title-only callout
> [!note]- Are callouts foldable?
> Yes! In a foldable callout, the contents are hidden when the callout is collapsed
> [!note]+ Are callouts foldable?
> Yes! In a foldable callout, the contents are hidden when the callout is collapsed
Result
Callouts can have custom titles
Title-only callout
Are callouts foldable?
Yes! In a foldable callout, the contents are hidden when the callout is collapsed
Are callouts foldable?
Yes! In a foldable callout, the contents are hidden when the callout is collapsed
Text Markers
Bold
You can show importance of a snippet of text with a heavier font-weight by enclosing it with two asterisks **
.
I am rendered with **bold text**
Result
I am rendered with bold text
Italics
You can emphasize a snippet of text with italics by enclosing it with underscores _
.
I am rendered with _italicized text_
Result
I am rendered with italicized text
Marked Text
You can mark text in the predefined accent color of your stylesheet.
Hugo Since Hugo 0.126.0, you can activate this through the Hugo Extra Extension in your hugo.toml
==Parts== of this text ==are marked!==
HTML You can also use it by configuring Hugo for usage of HTML.
<mark>Parts</mark> of this text <mark>are marked!</mark>
Result
Parts of this text are marked!
Inserted Text
You can mark text additions to existing text.
Hugo Since Hugo 0.126.0, you can activate this through the Hugo Extra Extension in your hugo.toml
HTML You can also use it by configuring Hugo for usage of HTML.
The <ins>hot, new</ins> stuff
Result
Deleted Text
GFM You can do strikethroughs by enclosing text with two tildes ~~
. See Hugo’s documentation remarks if you want to use this together with the subscript syntax.
~~Strike through~~ this text
Result
Special Typesetting
Text Substitution
Pants You can combine multiple punctuation characters to single typographic entities. This will only be applied to text outside of code blocks or inline code.
Double quotes `"` and single quotes `'` of enclosed text are replaced by **"double curly quotes"** and **'single curly quotes'**.
Double dashes `--` and triple dashes `---` are replaced by en-dash **--** and em-dash **---** entities.
Double arrows pointing left `<<` or right `>>` are replaced by arrow **<<** and **>>** entities.
Three consecutive dots `...` are replaced by an ellipsis **...** entity.
Result
Double quotes "
and single quotes '
of enclosed text are replaced by “double curly quotes” and ‘single curly quotes’.
Double dashes --
and triple dashes ---
are replaced by en-dash – and em-dash — entities.
Double arrows pointing left <<
or right >>
are replaced by arrow « and » entities.
Three consecutive dots ...
are replaced by an ellipsis … entity.
Subscript and Superscript
You can also use subscript and superscript text. For more complex stuff, you can use the math
shortcode.
Hugo Since Hugo 0.126.0, you can activate this through the Hugo Extra Extension in your hugo.toml
How many liters H~2~O fit into 1dm^3^?
HTML You can also use it by configuring Hugo for usage of HTML.
How many liters H<sub>2</sub>O fit into 1dm<sup>3</sup>?
Result
How many liters H2O fit into 1dm3?
Keyboard Shortcuts
HTML You can use the <kbd>
element to style keyboard shortcuts.
Press <kbd>STRG</kbd> <kbd>ALT</kbd> <kbd>DEL</kbd> to end your shift early.
Result
Press STRG ALT DEL to end your shift early.
Lists
Unordered
You can write a list of items in which the order of the items does not explicitly matter.
It is possible to nest lists by indenting an item for the next sublevel.
You may use any of -
, *
or +
to denote bullets for each list item but should not switch between those symbols inside one whole list.
- Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet
- Consectetur adipiscing elit
- Vestibulum laoreet porttitor sem
- Ac tristique libero volutpat at
- Nulla volutpat aliquam velit
- Phasellus iaculis neque
- Purus sodales ultricies
- Faucibus porta lacus fringilla vel
Result
- Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet
- Consectetur adipiscing elit
- Vestibulum laoreet porttitor sem
- Ac tristique libero volutpat at
- Nulla volutpat aliquam velit
- Phasellus iaculis neque
- Purus sodales ultricies
- Faucibus porta lacus fringilla vel
Ordered
You can create a list of items in which the order of items does explicitly matter.
It is possible to nest lists by indenting an item for the next sublevel.
Markdown will automatically number each of your items consecutively. This means, the order number you are providing is irrelevant.
1. Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet
3. Consectetur adipiscing elit
1. Integer molestie lorem at massa
7. Facilisis in pretium nisl aliquet
99. Nulla volutpat aliquam velit
1. Faucibus porta lacus fringilla vel
1. Aenean sit amet erat nunc
17. Eget porttitor lorem
Result
- Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet
- Consectetur adipiscing elit
- Integer molestie lorem at massa
- Facilisis in pretium nisl aliquet
- Nulla volutpat aliquam velit
- Faucibus porta lacus fringilla vel
- Aenean sit amet erat nunc
- Eget porttitor lorem
Tasks
GFM You can add task lists resulting in checked or unchecked non-clickable items
- [x] Basic Test
- [ ] More Tests
- [x] View
- [x] Hear
- [ ] Smell
Result
Definitions
PHP Definition lists are made of terms and definitions of these terms, much like in a dictionary.
A definition list in Markdown Extra is made of a single-line term followed by a colon and the definition for that term. You can also associate more than one term to a definition.
If you add empty lines around the definition terms, additional vertical space will be generated. Also multiple paragraphs are possible
Apple
: Pomaceous fruit of plants of the genus Malus in the family Rosaceae.
: An American computer company.
Orange
: The fruit of an evergreen tree of the genus Citrus.
You can make juice out of it.
: A telecommunication company.
You can't make juice out of it.
Result
- Apple
- Pomaceous fruit of plants of the genus Malus in the family Rosaceae.
- An American computer company.
- Orange
- The fruit of an evergreen tree of the genus Citrus.
You can make juice out of it.
- A telecommunication company.
You can’t make juice out of it.
Code
Inline Code
Inline snippets of code can be wrapped with backticks `
.
In this example, `<div></div>` is marked as code.
Result
In this example, <div></div>
is marked as code.
Indented Code Block
A simple code block can be generated by indenting several lines of code by at least two spaces.
Be impressed by my advanced code:
// Some comments
line 1 of code
line 2 of code
line 3 of code
Result
Be impressed by my advanced code:
// Some comments
line 1 of code
line 2 of code
line 3 of code
Fenced Code Block
If you want to gain more control of your code block you can enclose your code by at least three backticks ```
a so called fence.
GFM You can also add a language specifier directly after the opening fence, ```js
, and syntax highlighting will automatically be applied according to the selected language in the rendered HTML.
See Code Highlighting for additional documentation.
```js
{
name: "Claus",
surname: "Santa",
profession: "courier",
age: 666,
address: {
city: "North Pole",
postalCode: 1,
country: "Arctic"
},
friends: [ "Dasher", "Dancer", "Prancer", "Vixen", "Comet", "Cupid", "Donder", "Blitzen", "Rudolph" ]
};
```
Result
{
name: "Claus",
surname: "Santa",
profession: "courier",
age: 666,
address: {
city: "North Pole",
postalCode: 1,
country: "Arctic"
},
friends: [ "Dasher", "Dancer", "Prancer", "Vixen", "Comet", "Cupid", "Donder", "Blitzen", "Rudolph" ]
};
Tables
GFM You can create tables by adding pipes as dividers between each cell, and by adding a line of dashes (also separated by bars) beneath the header. Note that the pipes do not need to be vertically aligned.
| Option | Description |
|--------|-------------|
| data | path to data files to supply the data that will be passed into templates. |
| engine | engine to be used for processing templates. Handlebars is the default. |
| ext | extension to be used for dest files. |
Result
Option |
Description |
data |
path to data files to supply the data that will be passed into templates. |
engine |
engine to be used for processing templates. Handlebars is the default. |
ext |
extension to be used for dest files. |
Aligned Columns
Adding a colon on the left and/or right side of the dashes below any heading will align the text for that column accordingly.
| Option | Number | Description |
|-------:|:------:|:------------|
| data | 1 | path to data files to supply the data that will be passed into templates. |
| engine | 2 | engine to be used for processing templates. Handlebars is the default. |
| ext | 3 | extension to be used for dest files. |
Result
Option |
Number |
Description |
data |
1 |
path to data files to supply the data that will be passed into templates. |
engine |
2 |
engine to be used for processing templates. Handlebars is the default. |
ext |
3 |
extension to be used for dest files. |
Links
Autolink
GFM Absolute URLs will automatically be converted into a link.
This is a link to https://example.com.
Result
This is a link to https://example.com.
Basic Link
You can explicitly define links in case you want to use non-absolute URLs or want to give different text.
[Assemble](http://assemble.io)
Result
For even further information, you can add an additional text, displayed in a tooltip on hovering over the link.
[Upstage](https://github.com/upstage/ "Visit Upstage!")
Result
Link References
Links can be simplyfied for recurring reuse by using a reference ID to later define the URL location. This simplyfies writing if you want to use a link more than once in a document.
[Example][somelinkID]
[somelinkID]: https://example.com "Go to example domain"
Result
PHP Footnotes work mostly like reference-style links. A footnote is made of two things, a marker in the text that will become a superscript number and a footnote definition that will be placed in a list of footnotes.
Usually the list of footnotes will be shown at the end of your document. If we use a footnote in a notice box it will instead be listed at the end of its box.
Footnotes can contain block elements, which means that you can put multiple paragraphs, lists, blockquotes and so on in a footnote. It works the same as for list items, just indent the following paragraphs by four spaces in the footnote definition.
That's some text with a footnote[^1]
[^1]: And that's the footnote.
That's some more text with a footnote.[^someid]
[^someid]:
Anything of interest goes here.
Blue light glows blue.
Result
That’s some text with a footnote
That’s some more text with a footnote.
Images
Basic Images
Images have a similar syntax to links but include a preceding exclamation mark.
![Spock](https://octodex.github.com/images/spocktocat.png)
Result
Like links, images can also be given a tooltip.
![Picard](https://octodex.github.com/images/jean-luc-picat.jpg "Jean Luc Picard")
Result
Image References
Images can also be linked by reference ID to later define the URL location. This simplyfies writing if you want to use an image more than once in a document.
![La Forge][laforge]
[laforge]: https://octodex.github.com/images/trekkie.jpg "Geordi La Forge"
Result
Image Effects
Relearn This theme allows additional non-standard formatting by setting query parameter at the end of the image URL. See the image effects docs for a detailed example and how to configure it.
Resizing
Add query parameter width
and/or height
to the link image to resize the image. Values are CSS values (default is auto
).
![Minion](https://octodex.github.com/images/minion.png?width=20vw)
Result
![Minion](https://octodex.github.com/images/minion.png?height=50px)
Result
![Minion](https://octodex.github.com/images/minion.png?height=50px&width=40vw)
Result
CSS Classes
Add a query parameter classes
to the link image to add CSS classes. Add some of the predefined values or even define your own in your CSS.
Shadow
![Spidertocat](https://octodex.github.com/images/spidertocat.png?classes=shadow)
Result
Border
![DrOctocat](https://octodex.github.com/images/droctocat.png?classes=border)
Result
Left
![Supertocat](https://octodex.github.com/images/okal-eltocat.jpg?classes=left)
Result
Right
![Riddlocat](https://octodex.github.com/images/riddlocat.jpg?classes=right)
Result
Inline
![Spidertocat](https://octodex.github.com/images/spidertocat.png?classes=inline)
![DrOctocat](https://octodex.github.com/images/droctocat.png?classes=inline)
![Supertocat](https://octodex.github.com/images/okal-eltocat.jpg?classes=inline)
![Riddlocat](https://octodex.github.com/images/riddlocat.jpg?classes=inline)
Result
Combination
![X-tocat](https://octodex.github.com/images/xtocat.jpg?classes=shadow,border,left)
Result
Lightbox
Add the query parameter lightbox=false
to the image link to disable the lightbox.
![Homercat](https://octodex.github.com/images/homercat.png?lightbox=false)
Result
Note
If you want to wrap an image in a link and lightbox=true
is your default setting, you have to explicitly disable the lightbox to avoid it to hijacking your link like:
[![Homercat](https://octodex.github.com/images/homercat.png?lightbox=false)](https://octodex.github.com/#homercat)