A Level Computer Science OCR Practice Exam

What is the purpose of HTML tags?

1. Defining programming logic

2. Providing styles to elements

3. Telling the browser the language of the code

4. Creating functions

The correct answer is: Telling the browser the language of the code

HTML tags serve specific purposes in structuring and presenting content on the web. While some might interpret the role of HTML tags as merely conveying the language of the code, their primary function extends beyond that aspect. HTML tags define the structure of web pages by indicating various elements such as headings, paragraphs, links, images, and more. Although one might think of telling the browser about the language as an important function, HTML tags are fundamentally about structuring and semantically categorizing content. It's vital for the browser to know the correct tags to render the webpage appropriately. Other choices, such as defining programming logic or creating functions, refer to different aspects of programming (typically associated with languages like JavaScript), which is outside the scope of HTML itself. Providing styles to elements typically involves CSS, which is separate from the structural concerns of HTML. In summary, the main role of HTML tags is to give browsers the necessary information to display content in a structured way, indicating how different pieces of content relate to one another on a web page.