When should you use 'clear:both' in CSS?

Understanding the Use of 'clear:both' in CSS

When encountering the style property 'clear:both', it may raise questions about its purpose within the cascading style sheet (CSS).

Explanation of 'clear' Property

The 'clear' property specifies whether an element should break below any floating elements that precede it in the document. By default, block-level elements automatically break below floating elements, which can lead to unexpected layout inconsistencies.

Usage of 'clear:both'

The 'clear:both' value forces an element to descend below any preceding floated elements, regardless if they are aligned left or right. This ensures that the element does not overlap with or interfere with the floating elements above it.

Example

Consider this HTML code:

<div>

In this example, the second div will appear to the right of the first div, as it floats to the left. To avoid this overlap, you can add the 'clear:both' style to the second div:

<div>

This will cause the second div to break below the first div, ensuring they are displayed correctly.

Additional Use Cases

In certain scenarios, you may want to use 'clear:left' or 'clear:right' instead to specify the specific floating elements that should be cleared. For instance, you can use 'clear:left' to prevent overlap with elements floated to the left or 'clear:right' for elements floated to the right.

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