HTML Ordered Lists

If you mix up the steps of a recipe, the cinnamon rolls fail. If you mix up the items on a shopping list, nothing changes. HTML has a different element for each of these two kinds of list, because the order carries meaning in the first one and not in the second. A list whose order matters is an ordered list, and HTML writes it with the <ol> element.

The <ol> and <li> elements

An ordered list needs two elements. The <ol> element marks the whole list. Inside it, each <li> element ("list item") marks one item:

<ol>
  <li>Mix the flour, yeast and sugar.</li>