Text box

A text entry box
A multi-line "textarea" text box in a web browser

A text box[a] is a control element of a graphical user interface, that should enable the user to input text information to be used by a program.[1][2] Human Interface Guidelines recommend a single-line text box when only one line of input is required, and a multi-line text box only if more than one line of input may be required. Non-editable text boxes can serve the purpose of simply displaying text.

A typical text box is a rectangle of any size, possibly with a border that separates the text box from the rest of the interface. Text boxes may contain zero, one, or two scrollbars. Text boxes usually display a text cursor (commonly a blinking vertical line), indicating the current region of text being edited. It is common for the mouse cursor to change its shape when it hovers over a text box.


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  1. ^ "What does text box mean?". www.definitions.net. Retrieved 2020-08-08.
  2. ^ "Text Box Definition". techterms.com. Retrieved 2020-08-08.