• Success Criterion 1.3.1
  • Conformance level A

Term-Definition Pairs With No Real Definition List Markup

1.3.1 — Info and Relationships

Scenario

Setting

A real-estate marketplace's listing page

What’s wrong

Definition/description pairs presented visually without definition-list code (dl/dt/dd) or equivalent text association.

Example

<div class="heading">Shipping Address</div>

Why it matters

Screen-reader, braille, and reading-tool users who depend on coded structure rather than visual layout.

How to test

Inspect term/definition pairs (e.g., a glossary) in DevTools: check for dl/dt/dd or another explicit text association — purely visual spacing/formatting fails.

How to fix

Use definition-list code (dl/dt/dd) (or explicit text association) for term–definition pairs.

<h2>Shipping Address</h2>

A real heading element exposes the section structure to assistive tech; a styled div doesn't.

Outcome

On a real-estate marketplace's listing page, this barrier is gone for screen-reader, braille — they can finish what they came here to do.

Who is affected

Screen-reader, braille, and reading-tool users who depend on coded structure rather than visual layout.

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