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• Definition and Usage of HTML ondragstart Event Attribute

Definition and Usage of HTML ondragstart Event Attribute

The ondragstart attribute fires when the user starts to drag an element or text selection.

Drag and drop is a very common feature in HTML5. It is when you "grab" an object and drag it to a different location. For more information, see our HTML Tutorial on HTML5 Drag and Drop.

Note: To make an element draggable, use the global HTML5 draggable attribute.

Tip: Links and images are draggable by default, and do not need the draggable attribute.

There are many event attributes that are used, and can occur, in the different stages of a drag and drop operation:

• Events fired on the draggable target (the source element):
  • ondragstart - fires when the user starts to drag an element
  • ondrag - fires when an element is being dragged
  • ondragend - fires when the user has finished dragging the element


• Events fired on the drop target:
  • ondragenter - fires when the dragged element enters the drop target
  • ondragover - fires when the dragged element is over the drop target
  • ondragleave - fires when the dragged element leaves the drop target
  • ondrop - fires when the dragged element is dropped on the drop target