Web/API/Selection/containsNode

This is an experimental technologyCheck the Browser compatibility table carefully before using this in production.

The Selection.containsNode() method indicates whether a specfied node is part of the selection.

Syntax

sel.containsNode(node, partialContainment)

Parameters

node: The node that is being looked for in the selection.
partialContainment Optional: When true, containsNode() returns true when a part of the node is part of the selection. When false, containsNode() only returns true when the entire node is part of the selection. If not specified, the default value false is used.

Example

Check for selection

This snippet checks whether anything inside the body element is selected.

console.log(window.getSelection().containsNode(document.body, true));

Find the hidden word

In this example, a message appears when you select the secret word. It uses addEventListener() to check for selectionchange events.

HTML

<p>Can you find the secret word?</p>
<p>Hmm, where <span id="secret" style="color:transparent">SECRET</span> could it be?</p>
<p id="win" hidden>You found it!</p>

JavaScript

const secret = document.getElementById('secret');
const win = document.getElementById('win');

// Listen for selection changes
document.addEventListener('selectionchange', () => {
  const selection = window.getSelection();
  const found = selection.containsNode(secret);

  win.toggleAttribute('hidden', !found);
});

Result

Specifications

Specification	Status	Comment
Selection APIThe definition of 'Selection.containsNode()' in that specification.	Working Draft	Current

Browser compatibility

Update compatibility data on GitHub

	Desktop						Mobile
	Chrome	Edge	Firefox	Internet Explorer	Opera	Safari	Android webview	Chrome for Android	Firefox for Android	Opera for Android	Safari on iOS	Samsung Internet
`containsNode` Experimental'	Chrome Full support Yes	Edge Full support 12	Firefox Full support 4 Notes' Full support 4 Notes' Notes' Before Firefox 35, the method didn't throw if `node` was `null`.	IE No support No	Opera Full support Yes	Safari Full support Yes	WebView Android Full support Yes	Chrome Android Full support Yes	Firefox Android Full support 4 Notes' Full support 4 Notes' Notes' Before Firefox 35, the method didn't throw if `node` was `null`.	Opera Android Full support Yes	Safari iOS Full support Yes	Samsung Internet Android Full support Yes
`partialContainment` parameter is optional Experimental'	Chrome Full support Yes	Edge Full support ≤79	Firefox Full support 55	IE No support No	Opera Full support Yes	Safari Full support Yes	WebView Android Full support Yes	Chrome Android Full support Yes	Firefox Android Full support 55	Opera Android Full support Yes	Safari iOS Full support Yes	Samsung Internet Android Full support Yes

Legend

Full support: Full support
No support: No support
Experimental. Expect behavior to change in the future.': Experimental. Expect behavior to change in the future.
See implementation notes.': See implementation notes.