overflow-wrap CSS property
Baseline
Widely available
This feature is well established and works across many devices and browser versions. It’s been available across browsers since October 2018.
The overflow-wrap CSS property applies to text, setting whether the browser should insert line breaks within an otherwise unbreakable string to prevent text from overflowing its line box.
Note:
The property was originally a nonstandard and unprefixed Microsoft extension called word-wrap, and was implemented by most browsers with the same name. It has since been renamed to overflow-wrap, with word-wrap being an alias.
Try it
overflow-wrap: normal;
overflow-wrap: anywhere;
overflow-wrap: break-word;
<section class="default-example" id="default-example">
<div class="example-container">
Most words are short & don't need to break. But
<strong class="transition-all" id="example-element">Antidisestablishmentarianism</strong>
is long. The width is set to min-content, with a max-width of 11em.
</div>
</section>
.example-container {
background-color: rgb(255 0 200 / 0.2);
border: 3px solid rebeccapurple;
padding: 0.75em;
width: min-content;
max-width: 11em;
height: 200px;
}
Note:
In contrast to word-break, overflow-wrap will only create a break if an entire word cannot be placed on its own line without overflowing.
Syntax
css
/* Keyword values */
overflow-wrap: normal;
overflow-wrap: break-word;
overflow-wrap: anywhere;
/* Global values */
overflow-wrap: inherit;
overflow-wrap: initial;
overflow-wrap: revert;
overflow-wrap: revert-layer;
overflow-wrap: unset;
The overflow-wrap property is specified as a single keyword chosen from the list of values below.
Values
normal-
Lines may only break at normal word break points (such as a space between two words).
anywhere-
To prevent overflow, an otherwise unbreakable string of characters — like a long word or URL — may be broken at any point if there are no otherwise-acceptable break points in the line. No hyphenation character is inserted at the break point. Soft wrap opportunities introduced by the word break are considered when calculating min-content intrinsic sizes.
break-word-
The same as the
anywherevalue, with normally unbreakable words allowed to be broken at arbitrary points if there are no otherwise acceptable break points in the line, but soft wrap opportunities introduced by the word break are NOT considered when calculating min-content intrinsic sizes.
Formal definition
| Initial value | normal |
|---|---|
| Applies to | text elements |
| Inherited | yes |
| Computed value | as specified |
| Animation type | discrete |
Formal syntax
overflow-wrap =
normal |
break-word |
anywhere
Examples
Comparing overflow-wrap, word-break, and hyphens
This example compares the results of overflow-wrap, word-break, and hyphens when breaking up a long word.
HTML
html
<p>
They say the fishing is excellent at Lake
<em class="normal">Chargoggagoggmanchauggagoggchaubunagungamaugg</em>, though
I've never been there myself. (<code>normal</code>)
</p>
<p>
They say the fishing is excellent at Lake
<em class="ow-anywhere">Chargoggagoggmanchauggagoggchaubunagungamaugg</em>,
though I've never been there myself. (<code>overflow-wrap: anywhere</code>)
</p>
<p>
They say the fishing is excellent at Lake
<em class="ow-break-word">Chargoggagoggmanchauggagoggchaubunagungamaugg</em>,
though I've never been there myself. (<code>overflow-wrap: break-word</code>)
</p>
<p>
They say the fishing is excellent at Lake
<em class="word-break">Chargoggagoggmanchauggagoggchaubunagungamaugg</em>,
though I've never been there myself. (<code>word-break</code>)
</p>
<p>
They say the fishing is excellent at Lake
<em class="hyphens">Chargoggagoggmanchauggagoggchaubunagungamaugg</em>, though
I've never been there myself. (<code>hyphens</code>, without
<code>lang</code> attribute)
</p>
<p lang="en">
They say the fishing is excellent at Lake
<em class="hyphens">Chargoggagoggmanchauggagoggchaubunagungamaugg</em>, though
I've never been there myself. (<code>hyphens</code>, English rules)
</p>
<p class="hyphens" lang="de">
They say the fishing is excellent at Lake
<em class="hyphens">Chargoggagoggmanchauggagoggchaubunagungamaugg</em>, though
I've never been there myself. (<code>hyphens</code>, German rules)
</p>
CSS
css
p {
width: 13em;
margin: 2px;
background: gold;
}
.ow-anywhere {
overflow-wrap: anywhere;
}
.ow-break-word {
overflow-wrap: break-word;
}
.word-break {
word-break: break-all;
}
.hyphens {
hyphens: auto;
}
Result
Specifications
| Specification |
|---|
| CSS Text Module Level 3 # overflow-wrap-property |
Browser compatibility
| desktop | mobile | |||||||||||
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overflow-wrap
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anywhere
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break-word
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normal
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Legend
Tip: you can click/tap on a cell for more information.
- Full support
- Full support
- Uses a non-standard name
- Has more compatibility info.