3.4. File syntax
3.4.11. Definition lists
3.4.10. Tables
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3.4.11. Definition lists

Markdown supports a special list format called a definition lists. It consists of a term and an explanation, like in a dictionary. To create a definition list, we write a term in the first line, and in the next one, we put a definition followed by : and some spaces.

Apple
:   Fruit of the apple tree.

Orange
:   Citrus fruit, a type of berry.
Apple
Fruit of the apple tree.
Orange
Citrus fruit, a type of berry.

Definition lists support a group of explanations to the same term or a couple of terms to one explanation:

Word
:   Unit of language that builds phrases.
:   Fixed-size unit of bits that creates a natural data unit in computers.

TF
TypeFriendly
:   A nice documentation generator written in PHP.
Word
Unit of language that builds phrases.
Fixed-size unit of bits that creates a natural data unit in computers.
TF
TypeFriendly
A nice documentation generator written in PHP.

Separating the definitions from terms with one empty line will enclose them into paragraphs.

Apple

:   Fruit of the apple tree.

Orange

:   Citrus fruit, a type of berry.
Apple

Fruit of the apple tree.

Banana

Citrus fruit, a type of berry.

Like the ordinary lists, the definition lists may contain other block elements, such as paragraphs or code blocks. They must be followed by four spaces or a tabulation.

Term 1

:   This is a definition with two paragraphs. Lorem ipsum 
    dolor sit amet, consectetuer adipiscing elit. Aliquam 
    hendrerit mi posuere lectus.

    Vestibulum enim wisi, viverra nec, fringilla in, laoreet
    vitae, risus.

:   The second defintion for the term 1 is also placed inside a
    paragraph, because it is followed with an empty line.

Term 2

:   This definition contains a code block and an ordered list:

        some code

    1.  element 1
    2.  element 2
Term 1

This is a definition with two paragraphs. Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetuer adipiscing elit. Aliquam hendrerit mi posuere lectus.

Vestibulum enim wisi, viverra nec, fringilla in, laoreet vitae, risus.

The second defintion for the term 1 is also placed inside a paragraph, because it is followed with an empty line.

Term 2

This definition contains a code block and an ordered list:

some code
  1. element 1
  2. element 2

Pay attention to the number of spaces in the beginning of each line.

3.4.11. Definition lists
3.4. File syntax
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3.4.10. Tables
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3.4.12. Footnotes