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Paragraph

Body text with a readable line length. The width is limited to 70 characters, because longer lines make it hard to find the start of the next one. That is the most common reason a text is hard to read even when the font is large enough.

AttributeUsed for
(omitted)Body text
data-variant="lead"The lead paragraph right below the heading
data-size="large"Text that should stand out
data-size="small"Asides, dates, source references

Consecutive paragraphs get space between them on their own.

ClassWhat it is
.lt-paragraphThe paragraph. The size comes from data-size, the lead from data-variant.
VariableDefault
--lt-paragraph-width70ch
--lt-paragraph-gapvar(--lt-spacing-3)
--lt-paragraph-line-heightvar(--lt-line-height-article)

--lt-paragraph-line-height applies to the default size. data-size="large" and data-variant="lead" set their own line height.

If the paragraph sits in a column that is already narrow enough, the limit can be removed:

.lt-card .lt-paragraph {
--lt-paragraph-width: none;
}

See Customising for how the variables and the layer work.

  • Do not use <br> to make paragraphs. A new <p> is what screen readers can jump between.
  • data-size="small" should not be used for anything the user has to read. Terms in small print are as hard on screen as on paper.
  • Leave the line length alone. It is the simplest difference between a text that is read and one that is skimmed.