---
id: css-text-pseudo-elements
title: "CSS Text Pseudo-elements"
category: "Frontend"
status: "draft"
verification_status: "conceptual"
canonical_id: ""
aliases: ["::first-line", "::first-letter", "text pseudo-elements", "drop cap", "first line styling"]
duplicate_of: ""
source_trust_level: "B"
confidence_score: 0.87
created_at: 2026-06-23
updated_at: 2026-06-23
review_reason: ""
merge_history: []
tags: ["css", "web", "frontend", "w3schools", "pseudo-elements", "typography"]
raw_sources: ["https://www.w3schools.com/css/css_pseudo_elements_text.asp"]
applied_in: []
github_commit: ""
---

# [[CSS Text Pseudo-elements]]

## 🎯 한 줄 통찰 (One-line insight)
The text pseudo-elements `::first-line` and `::first-letter` style just the opening line or opening letter of block-level text, and can be combined with classes and with each other. [S1]

## 🧠 핵심 개념 (Core concepts)
- **`::first-line`** — styles the first line of text; can only be applied to block-level elements. [S1]
- **`::first-letter`** — styles the first letter of text; can only be applied to block-level elements. [S1]
- **Works with classes** — pseudo-elements can be combined with HTML classes (e.g. `p.intro::first-letter`). [S1]
- **Combinable** — `::first-line` and `::first-letter` can both be applied to the same element. [S1]

## 🧩 추출된 패턴 (Extracted patterns)
- **Drop-cap pattern** — `::first-letter` with an enlarged font size produces a drop-cap-style opening letter. [S1]
- **Class-scoped pseudo-element** — `selector.class::first-letter` limits the effect to a specific subset of elements. [S1]
- **Stacking pseudo-elements** — applying both `::first-letter` and `::first-line` to one selector layers two styles on the same paragraph. [S1]

## 📖 세부 내용 (Details)
**The `::first-line` pseudo-element** [S1]
The `::first-line` pseudo-element is used to style the first line of text. It can only be applied to block-level elements.
```css
p::first-line {
  color: red;
  font-variant: small-caps;
  font-size: 19px;
}
```

**The `::first-letter` pseudo-element** [S1]
The `::first-letter` pseudo-element is used to style the first letter of text. Like `::first-line`, it can only be applied to block-level elements.
```css
p::first-letter {
  color: red;
  font-size: xx-large;
}
```

**Combining with a class** [S1]
Pseudo-elements can be combined with HTML classes:
```css
p.intro::first-letter {
  color: #ff0000;
  font-size: 200%;
}
```

**Multiple pseudo-elements on one selector** [S1]
Several pseudo-elements can be combined:
```css
p::first-letter {
  color: red;
  font-size: xx-large;
}

p::first-line {
  color: blue;
  font-variant: small-caps;
}
```

## 🛠️ 적용 사례 (Applied in summary)
The page's applied examples are the red small-caps first line, the enlarged red first letter, the `.intro` class drop cap, and the stacked first-letter + first-line styling. No external project/commit applications found in the source.

## 💻 코드 패턴 (Code patterns)
First-line styling (language: CSS):
```css
p::first-line {
  color: red;
  font-variant: small-caps;
  font-size: 19px;
}
```
Drop-cap first letter (language: CSS):
```css
p::first-letter {
  color: red;
  font-size: xx-large;
}
```

## ⚖️ 모순 및 업데이트 (Contradictions & updates)
No contradictions found in the source.

## ✅ 검증 상태 및 신뢰도
- **상태:** draft
- **검증 단계:** conceptual (실제 적용 사례 발견 시 applied/validated로 승격 가능)
- **출처 신뢰도:** B (W3Schools — widely used educational reference, not a primary standards body)
- **신뢰 점수:** 0.87
- **중복 검사 결과:** 신규 생성 (New discovery)

## 🔗 지식 그래프 (Knowledge Graph)
- **상위/루트:** [[CSS Tutorial]]
- **관련 개념:** [[CSS Pseudo-elements]], [[CSS Content Pseudo-elements]], [[CSS Text]]
- **참조 맥락:** Referenced when styling the opening line or letter of paragraphs, e.g. drop caps.

## 📚 출처 (Sources)
- [S1] W3Schools — CSS Text Pseudo-elements — https://www.w3schools.com/css/css_pseudo_elements_text.asp

## 📝 변경 이력 (Change history)
- 2026-06-23: Initial draft synthesized from the W3Schools "CSS Text Pseudo-elements" page (Astra wiki-curation, P-Reinforce v3.1 format).