Is it possible to apply CSS to half of a character?

html

responsive-design

css

web-development

byNikita Barsukov·Sep 2, 2024

Absolutely yes! To style half a character, you can simply employ the CSS gradients and background-clip properties. This solution uses a gradient to create a transition in the middle of the text, simulating bi-color styling. Try the following code:

.split-color {
  font-size: 60px;
  background: linear-gradient(to right, black 50%, red 50%);
  -webkit-background-clip: text; /* For Safari users, because they matter too */
  -webkit-text-fill-color: transparent; 
  background-clip: text;
  color: transparent;
}

<span class="split-color">A</span>

And voila, you have a character 'A' with one half black and the other half red!

Expert techniques

Basic gradient style won’t cover all the scenarios. Let's dig into more advanced methods to attain half-styling of characters.

Half-styling with pseudo-elements

CSS pseudo-elements can provide a detailed control, especially when styling characters within a larger text. Check this out:

.half-styled:before {
  content: attr(data-content);
  float: left;
  width: 50%;
  overflow: hidden;
}
.half-styled:after {
  content: attr(data-content);
  float: right;
  width: 50%;
  overflow: hidden;
  text-align: right;
}

<span class="half-styled" data-content="X"></span>

Embrace JavaScript for dynamic content styling

Dynamic content styling needs the touch of JavaScript. You can use the wrapString function to split text into individual characters for segment styling:

function wrapString(text) {
  return [...text].map(char => `<span class='half-style' data-content='${char}'>${char}</span>`).join('');
}

Add a touch of glitch

Consider adding the vibrant Glitch effect to make your text truly stand out:

@keyframes glitch {
  0% { clip: rect(42px, 9999px, 44px, 0); }
  20% { clip: rect(8px, 9999px, 36px, 0); }
  /* P.S.: Spread out these snippets for interactive fun! */
}
.glitch {
  animation: glitch 1s infinite;
}

Harness the power of plugins

The open-source HalfStyle and Splitchar plugins provide a compelling way to easily half-styling your characters:

<script src="halfstyle.min.js"></script>
<span data-halfstyle="gradient">A</span>
<script src="jquery.js"></script>
<script src="splitchar.js"></script>
<span class="splitchar">A</span>

$(".splitchar").splitchar(); /* Just like saying Abracadabra! */

Prioritizing accessibility

When it comes to text styling, accessibility should be a priority. Certain techniques may disturb text selection and make it unfriendly for screen readers. Thankfully, we have great solutions:

Maintaining readability

Ensure your text effects do not compromise readability:

.styled:hover::before {
  pointer-events: none; /* So the cursor doesn't think it's a link */
}

Keeping the text formatting consistent

Maintain the original text structure within styled spans:

.half-style {
  white-space: pre-line; /* Keeping spaces and line breaks as they are */
}

Ensuring compatibility with dynamic content

Ensure style effects are applicable to dynamic content without relying on static images:

document.querySelector('#dynamic-content').innerHTML = wrapString("Dynamic Content");

Pro-tips for effective styling

Enhance branding: Boost your brand identity with creative text styling.
Community Contributions: Participate in open-source projects like HalfStyle to co-create better styling methods.
Showcase innovations: Utilize platforms like JSFiddle to display innovative applications of dynamic text styling.
Advanced CSS: Deep-dive into properties like text-shadow to apply unique effects on character halves.