Summary
An asterisk (*
) is the universal selector for CSS. It matches a single element of any type. Omitting the asterisk with simple selectors has the same effect. For instance, *.warning
and .warning
are considered equal.
In CSS 3, the asterisk may be used in combination with namespaces:
ns|*
- matches all elements in namespace ns*|*
- matches all elements|*
- matches all elements without any declared namespace
Examples
* [lang^=en] { color:green; } *.warning { color:red; } *#maincontent { border: 1px solid blue; }
<p class="warning"> <span lang="en-us">A green span</span> in a red paragraph. </p> <p id="maincontent" lang="en-gb"> <span class="warning">A red span</span> in a green paragraph. </p>
Specifications
Specification | Status | Comment |
---|---|---|
Selectors Level 4 The definition of 'universal selector' in that specification. |
Working Draft | No changes |
Selectors Level 3 The definition of 'universal selector' in that specification. |
Recommendation | Defined behavior in regard of namespaces and added hint that omitting the selector is allowed within pseudo-elements |
CSS Level 2 (Revision 1) The definition of 'universal selector' in that specification. |
Recommendation | Initial definition |
Browser compatibility
Feature | Chrome | Firefox (Gecko) | Internet Explorer | Opera | Safari |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Basic support | (Yes) | 1.0 (1.7 or earlier) | 7 | (Yes) | (Yes) |
Combination with namespace support | (Yes) | 1.0 (1.7 or earlier) | 9 | 8 | 1.3 |
Feature | Android | Chrome for Android | Firefox Mobile (Gecko) | IE Mobile | Opera Mobile | Safari Mobile |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Basic support | ? | ? | 1.0 (1) | ? | ? | ? |
Combination with namespace support | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? | ? |
Document Tags and Contributors
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Contributors to this page:
teoli,
Sebastianz,
cvrebert,
xiaolong,
bignell,
MusikAnimal,
SphinxKnight,
FredB,
jswisher,
koroliov,
Sheppy,
tregagnon,
nimbupani,
Miken32,
Montehansen,
BijuGC
Last updated by:
teoli,