Markdown Basics: Bold Text, Indentation, File Format, and Strikethrough

Markdown is a lightweight markup language that makes text formatting simple and readable. Whether you’re writing documentation, blogging, or creating content for static websites, Markdown helps you format text without complex HTML or rich-text editors.

In this guide, we’ll cover:

What a Markdown file is
How to bold text
Indentation techniques
How to use strikethrough
Additional Markdown syntax

Let’s begin by understanding what a markdown file is;

What is a Markdown File?

A Markdown file is a plain text file with formatting syntax that can be converted into HTML, PDF, or other formats. It’s widely used in documentation, blogging, note-taking, and coding environments like GitHub and Jupyter Notebooks.

Key Characteristics

• File Extensions: .mdx, .md, or .markdown
• Common Use Cases: README files, technical documentation, blogs
• Supported Platforms: GitHub, VS Code, Jupyter Notebooks, and more
• Easy Conversion: Markdown files can be converted into HTML, PDF, Word

Example Markdown File

# Welcome to Markdown!

Markdown allows for **bold text**, _italic text_, and ~~strikethrough~~.

- This is a list item  
- [Click here](https://example.com) for a link  

> This is a blockquote.  

How to Bold in Markdown

To bold text in Markdown, use either double asterisks (**) or double underscores (__):

**This is bold text**
__This is also bold text__

Rendered output:
This is bold text
This is also bold text

Combining Bold and Italics

**_This is bold and italic_**
__*This is also bold and italic*__

Rendered output:
This is bold and italic
This is also bold and italic_

When to Use Bold Text?

• To highlight important information
• To emphasize key points in documentation
• To make section titles stand out

---

How to Indent in Markdown

Markdown does not have a direct way to indent paragraphs, but you can use:

1. Code blocks
2. Blockquotes
3. List indentation

Indenting Code Blocks

To indent code, use triple backticks (```) or indent lines with four spaces:

```
function greet() {
  console.log("Hello, world!");
}
```

Rendered output:

function greet() {
  console.log("Hello, world!");
}

Blockquote Indentation

To indent text, use >:

> This is an indented blockquote.
>
> > This is a nested blockquote.

Rendered output:

This is an indented blockquote.

This is a nested blockquote.

Indenting Lists

Use spaces or tabs to create nested lists:

- First level
  - Second level
    - Third level

Rendered output:

• First level
  • Second level
    • Third level

For ordered lists:

1. Main item  
   1.1 Sub-item  
   - Bullet inside a numbered list  

Rendered output:

1. Main item
   1.1 Sub-item
   • Bullet inside a numbered list

---

Markdown Strikethrough

Strikethrough is done with double tildes (~~):

~~This text is strikethrough~~

Rendered output:
This text is strikethrough

Mixing Strikethrough with Other Formatting

~~**Bold strikethrough**~~  
~~_Italic strikethrough_~~

Rendered output:
Bold strikethrough
Italic strikethrough

---

Additional Markdown Syntax

Headings

Use # to define headings:

# H1
## H2
### H3
#### H4
##### H5
###### H6

Rendered output:

H2

H3

H4

H5

H6

Horizontal Lines

Use --- or ___ for dividers:

---

Rendered output:

---

Links

[Visit my website](https://example.com)

👉 Rendered output:
Visit my website

Images

![Markdown Logo](https://markdown-here.com/img/icon256.png)

Rendered output:

Conclusion

Markdown is a powerful yet simple way to format text. In this guide, we covered:

Bold Text
Indentation Techniques
Markdown File Format
Strikethrough Formatting
Additional Markdown Essentials