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<msup>

Write a mathematical superscript or subscript

— 1 min read

  • MathML
  • accessibility
  • semantics

<msup> + <msub> — Superscript and subscript

<msup> displays a superscript (x squared, power n). <msub> displays a subscript (x subscript 1, a subscript n). These are mathematical constructs, different from <sup> and <sub> which are typographic.

When to use it

You want to write a power, a sequence index, a subscript coefficient, or scientific notation in a formula. <msup> takes two children: the base and the exponent. <msub> takes two children: the base and the subscript. Do not confuse them with HTML's <sup> and <sub>, which are used for abbreviations and typography.

What you gain

Accessibility: screen readers announce "x squared" or "a subscript n" instead of reading the characters individually. The mathematical structure is preserved.

Code example

<math display="block">
  <mrow>
    <msup>
      <mi>x</mi>
      <mn>2</mn>
    </msup>
    <mo>+</mo>
    <msub>
      <mi>a</mi>
      <mi>n</mi>
    </msub>
    <mo>=</mo>
    <mn>0</mn>
  </mrow>
</math>

Further reading