Description

This property sets the background-color of an element; it’s good practice to specify a foreground color (color) at the same time, to ensure that conflicts don’t arise with colors or backgrounds that are defined elsewhere.

The background of an element is the area covered by the width and height of that element (whether those dimensions are set explicitly, or the content dictates them); it also includes the area covered by padding and borders. A background-color (or background-image) that’s applied to an element will appear beneath the foreground content of that element, and the area covered by the padding and border properties for the element. This coverage area is evident where an element has transparent (or dotted or dashed) borders, and the background is seen beneath the borders (or between the dots). Note that Internet Explorer versions up to and including 6 don’t support transparent borders.

Some area of the element in question must be visible if the background-color is to show through. If the element has no intrinsic height (defined either by its content or its dimensions), the background will not be seen. If an element contains only floated children which haven’t been cleared—see clear—then again the background won’t show, as the element’s height will be zero.