How to style dt and dd so they are on the same line?

Question

Using CSS, how can I style the following:

    
Mercury
    
Mercury (0.4 AU from the Sun) is the closest planet to th         


        

Answer 1

Here is one possible flex-based solution (SCSS):

dl {
  display: flex;
  flex-wrap: wrap;
  width: 100%;
  dt {
    width: 150px;
  }
  dd {
    margin: 0;
    flex: 1 0 calc(100% - 150px);
  }
}

that works for the following HTML (pug)

dl
  dt item 1
  dd desc 1
  dt item 2
  dd desc 2

Answer 2

If you use Bootstrap 3 (or earlier)...

<dl class="dl-horizontal">
    <dt>Label:</dt>
    <dd>
      Description of planet
    </dd>
    <dt>Label2:</dt>
    <dd>
      Description of planet
    </dd>
</dl>

Answer 3

Here's another option that works by displaying the dt and dd inline and then adding a line break after the dd.

dt, dd {
 display: inline;
}
dd:after {
 content:"\a";
 white-space: pre;
}

This is similar to Navaneeth's solution above, but using this approach, the content won't line up as in a table, but the dd will follow the dt immediately on every line regardless of length.

Answer 4

I have got a solution without using floats!
check this on codepen

Viz.

dl.inline dd {
  display: inline;
  margin: 0;
}
dl.inline dd:after{
  display: block;
  content: '';
}
dl.inline dt{
  display: inline-block;
  min-width: 100px;
}

Update - 3^rd Jan 2017: I have added flex-box based solution for the problem. Check that in the linked codepen & refine it as per needs. Thanks!

dl.inline-flex {
  display: flex;
  flex-flow: row;
  flex-wrap: wrap;
  width: 300px;      /* set the container width*/
  overflow: visible;
}
dl.inline-flex dt {
  flex: 0 0 50%;
  text-overflow: ellipsis;
  overflow: hidden;
}
dl.inline-flex dd {
  flex:0 0 50%;
  margin-left: auto;
  text-align: left;
  text-overflow: ellipsis;
  overflow: hidden;
}

Answer 5

Because I have yet to see an example that works for my use case, here is the most full-proof solution that I was able to realize.

dd {
    margin: 0;
}
dd::after {
    content: '\A';
    white-space: pre-line;
}
dd:last-of-type::after {
    content: '';
}
dd, dt {
    display: inline;
}
dd, dt, .address {
    vertical-align: middle;
}
dt {
    font-weight: bolder;
}
dt::after {
    content: ': ';
}
.address {
    display: inline-block;
    white-space: pre;
}

Surrounding

<dl>
  <dt>Phone Number</dt>
  <dd>+1 (800) 555-1234</dd>
  <dt>Email Address</dt>
  <dd><a href="#">example@example.com</a></dd>
  <dt>Postal Address</dt>
  <dd><div class="address">123 FAKE ST<br />EXAMPLE EX  00000</div></dd>
</dl>

Text

Strangely enough, it doesn't work with display: inline-block. I suppose that if you need to set the size of any of the dt elements or dd elements, you could set the dl's display as display: flexbox; display: -webkit-flex; display: flex; and the flex shorthand of the dd elements and the dt elements as something like flex: 1 1 50% and display as display: inline-block. But I haven't tested that, so approach with caution.

Answer 6

dl {
  width: 100%;
  overflow: hidden;
  background: #ff0;
  padding: 0;
  margin: 0
}
dt {
  float: left;
  width: 50%;
  /* adjust the width; make sure the total of both is 100% */
  background: #cc0;
  padding: 0;
  margin: 0
}
dd {
  float: left;
  width: 50%;
  /* adjust the width; make sure the total of both is 100% */
  background: #dd0
  padding: 0;
  margin: 0
}

<dl>
  <dt>Mercury</dt>
  <dd>Mercury (0.4 AU from the Sun) is the closest planet to the Sun and the smallest planet.</dd>
  <dt>Venus</dt>
  <dd>Venus (0.7 AU) is close in size to Earth, (0.815 Earth masses) and like Earth, has a thick silicate mantle around an iron core.</dd>
  <dt>Earth</dt>
  <dd>Earth (1 AU) is the largest and densest of the inner planets, the only one known to have current geological activity.</dd>
</dl>