What is CSS?

What is CSS?

CSS stands for Cascading Style Sheets. It's the language that makes websites beautiful!

Remember our three best friends from HTML?

1. HTML: the skeleton (structure)
2. CSS: the paint and clothes (looks), this is our hero today!
3. JavaScript: the brain (behavior)

What does CSS do?

HTML builds the bones of a page. Then CSS comes along and says:

• "Make this heading big and colorful."
• "Put these boxes side by side."
• "Add a smooth little animation when you hover."

The house analogy

• HTML builds the rooms (structure).
• CSS paints the walls, picks the furniture colors, and hangs the pictures (style).

CSS is a separate language

CSS is not HTML. It lives in its own files (like styles.css) or in a <style> block. It uses its own rules: selectors, properties, and values.

A tiny taste

That giant CSS rule later. First, the important part: CSS describes how things look, HTML describes what things are.

Why "Cascading"?

"Cascading" means rules flow like a waterfall down the page. Later rules can override earlier ones, and more specific rules beat less specific ones. You'll learn all about that in later lessons!

TL;DR

• CSS = Cascading Style Sheets = the looks.
• HTML builds structure; CSS paints it.
• CSS has its own files, syntax, and rules.
• The "cascade" decides which style wins when rules clash.