Markdown Syntax Guide

This post is a reference guide for Markdown syntax. Whether you’re writing blog posts, documentation, or README files, Markdown makes it easy to format text without complex tools.

Headings

Use # symbols for headings. More # means smaller heading.

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

Emphasis

Make text bold, italic, or both.

*italic text* or _italic text_
**bold text** or __bold text__
***bold and italic*** or ___bold and italic___

Lists

Unordered Lists

• Item one
• Item two
  • Nested item
  • Another nested item
• Item three

- Item one
- Item two
  - Nested item
  - Another nested item
- Item three

Ordered Lists

1. First item
2. Second item
3. Third item
   1. Nested item
   2. Another nested item

1. First item
2. Second item
3. Third item
   1. Nested item
   2. Another nested item

Links

Create inline links or reference-style links.

[inline link](https://geene.io)
[link with title](https://geene.io "GeeNe Homepage")

Images

![Alt text](image-url.jpg "Optional title")

Code

Inline Code

Use backticks for inline code.

Use `backticks` for inline code.

Code Blocks

Use triple backticks with optional language specification:

def hello_world():
    """A friendly greeting."""
    print("Hello, GeeNe!")

hello_world()

```python
def hello_world():
    print("Hello, GeeNe!")
```

Syntax Highlighting

Supported languages include: python, javascript, java, go, rust, bash, sql, json, html, css, and many more.

const greeting = (name) => {
    return `Hello, ${name}!`;
};

console.log(greeting("World"));

Blockquotes

“The best way to predict the future is to invent it.” — Alan Kay

You can also nest blockquotes.

Like this.

And this.

> Single blockquote
>> Nested blockquote

Horizontal Rules

Create horizontal lines with three or more hyphens, asterisks, or underscores:

---
***
___

Tables

| Syntax    | Description |
| --------- | ----------- |
| Header    | Title       |
| Paragraph | Text        |

Table Alignment

| Left-aligned | Center-aligned | Right-aligned |
| :----------- | :------------: | ------------: |
| Content      | Content        | Content       |

Task Lists

• Completed task
• Incomplete task
• Another task

- [x] Completed task
- [ ] Incomplete task

Footnotes

Here’s a sentence with a footnote¹.

Here's text with a footnote[^1].

[^1]: This is the footnote.

Strikethrough

This text is crossed out

~~crossed out text~~

Escaping Characters

Use backslash \ to escape Markdown characters:

*This text is not italic*

\*This text is not italic\*

HTML in Markdown

You can use HTML directly in Markdown:

<div style="background: #f0f0f0; padding: 10px;">
Custom HTML content
</div>

Emoji Support

If enabled in Hugo config, you can use emoji shortcodes:

:smile: :heart: :rocket: :computer:

:smile: :heart: :rocket:

Mathematical Expressions

If MathJax is enabled, you can write mathematical formulas:

Inline math: $E = mc^2$

Block math:

$$ \frac{n!}{k!(n-k)!} = \binom{n}{k} $$

Inline: $E = mc^2$

Block:
$$
\frac{n!}{k!(n-k)!} = \binom{n}{k}
$$

Best Practices

1. Use headings hierarchically - Don’t skip levels (H1 → H3)
2. Leave blank lines around blocks (lists, code, quotes)
3. Be consistent with your style (dashes vs asterisks)
4. Use meaningful link text - Avoid “click here”
5. Add alt text to images for accessibility

Useful Tips

• Preview your Markdown before publishing
• Most editors support Markdown shortcuts (Ctrl+B for bold, etc.)
• Keep lines reasonably short for readability in source
• Use linters like markdownlint for consistency

Resources

• Markdown Guide
• GitHub Flavored Markdown
• CommonMark Specification

That’s it! You now have a complete reference for Markdown syntax. Happy writing!

This guide is continuously updated. Bookmark it for future reference.