HTML Entity for Lowercase L Stroke (ł)

Beginner
⏱️ 5 min read
📚 Updated: Jun 2026
🎯 1 Code Example
Unicode U+0142
HTML Entity for Lowercase L Stroke tutorial illustration

What You'll Learn

How to display the lowercase l with stroke (ł) in HTML using named entity, hexadecimal, decimal, and CSS escape methods. This character is part of the Polish alphabet and appears in words like łódź, Polska, and miłość. The character is U+0142 in the Latin Extended-A block.

Render it with ł, ł, ł, or CSS escape \142. HTML provides the named entity ł for this character. In UTF-8 documents you can also type ł directly.

⚡ Quick Reference — Lowercase L Stroke Entity

Unicode U+0142

Latin Extended-A

Hex Code ł

Hexadecimal reference

HTML Code ł

Decimal reference

Named Entity ł

HTML5 named entity

Reference Table
Name           Value
────────────   ──────────
Unicode        U+0142
Hex code       ł
HTML code      ł
Named entity   ł
CSS code       \142
Meaning        Latin small letter l with stroke
Related        U+0141 = Ł (uppercase L stroke)
Related        U+006C = l (plain lowercase)
Block          Latin Extended-A (U+0100–U+017F)
1

Complete HTML Example

A simple example showing the lowercase l stroke (ł) using the named entity, hexadecimal code, decimal HTML code, and a CSS content escape:

html
<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>
<head>
 <style>
  #point:after{
   content: "\142";
  }
 </style>
</head>
<body>
<p>Symbol (hex): &#x0142;</p>
<p>Symbol (decimal): &#322;</p>
<p>Symbol (named): &lstrok;</p>
<p id="point">Symbol (CSS): </p>
</body>
</html>
Try It Yourself

🌐 Browser Support

The lowercase l stroke (ł) and the named entity &lstrok; are supported in modern browsers when the font includes Latin Extended-A glyphs:

Chrome1+
Firefox1+
Safari1+
Edge12+
Opera4+
Android4.4+
iOS Safari1+

👀 Live Preview

See the lowercase l stroke (ł) in Polish text contexts:

Large glyphł
Polish wordsłódź  |  Polska  |  miłość
Named entity&lstrok; renders as ł
Not the same asplain l (U+006C) or Ł (uppercase L stroke)
Numeric refs&#x0142; &#322; &lstrok; \142

🧠 How It Works

1

Named Entity

&lstrok; is the HTML5 named entity for the lowercase l with stroke—readable in source HTML.

HTML markup
2

Hexadecimal Code

&#x0142; uses the Unicode hexadecimal value 0142 to display the character. The x prefix indicates hexadecimal format.

HTML markup
3

Decimal HTML Code

&#322; uses the decimal Unicode value 322 to display the same character. Works in all HTML contexts.

HTML markup
4

CSS Entity

\142 is used in CSS stylesheets, particularly in the content property of pseudo-elements like ::before and ::after.

CSS stylesheet
=

Same visual result

All methods produce the glyph: ł. Unicode U+0142 sits in Latin Extended-A. Prefer the precomposed character over l + combining stroke. Do not confuse with plain l (U+006C) or Ł (uppercase L stroke).

✅

Use Cases

The lowercase l stroke (ł) is commonly used in:

🇵🇱 Polish language

Correct spelling of Polish words and proper names (e.g. łódź, Polska, miłość).

🔤 Linguistics

Academic texts and language descriptions using Latin Extended-A characters.

📖 Dictionaries

Polish dictionary entries, pronunciation guides, and language reference materials.

🌐 Localization

Localized websites and apps supporting Central European Latin characters.

📚 Language learning

Educational content for Polish and other languages that use the l with stroke.

♿ Accessibility

Using U+0142 ensures screen readers pronounce ł correctly in Polish text.

⚙ Programmatic HTML

When generating markup, &lstrok; or &#322; ensures correct Polish character output.

💡 Best Practices

Do

  • Use U+0142 (ł) for Polish text; use U+006C for plain letter l when semantics matter
  • Prefer &lstrok; over numeric codes when using entities—it is more readable
  • Serve pages as UTF-8; you can also type ł directly in UTF-8 source
  • Use the precomposed character U+0142 rather than l + combining stroke
  • Choose fonts that support Latin Extended-A for reliable Polish rendering

Don’t

  • Substitute plain l when ł is required for correct Polish spelling
  • Confuse ł (lowercase) with Ł (uppercase L stroke)
  • Put CSS escape \142 in HTML text nodes
  • Mix entity styles inconsistently within the same project
  • Assume all fonts render Latin Extended-A glyphs identically

Key Takeaways

1

Four references render ł; named entity is &lstrok;

&lstrok; &#x0142; &#322;
2

For CSS stylesheets, use the escape in the content property

\142
3

Unicode U+0142 — LATIN SMALL LETTER L WITH STROKE

4

Essential Polish alphabet letter in words like łódź and miłość

5

Previous: Lowercase L Script Small (ℓ)   Next: Lowercase M

❓ Frequently Asked Questions

Use the named entity &lstrok;, hexadecimal &#x0142;, decimal &#322;, or \142 in CSS content. The named entity is the most readable. In UTF-8 you can also type ł directly.
U+0142 (LATIN SMALL LETTER L WITH STROKE). Latin Extended-A block. Hex 0142, decimal 322. Used in Polish and some other languages.
For Polish text, linguistic content, language-learning materials, dictionaries, proper names, and any content that requires the correct character for meaning and accessibility.
Yes. The named HTML entity for ł is &lstrok;. You can also use &#x0142;, &#322;, or the CSS entity \142. In UTF-8 pages you can type ł directly.
HTML code (&lstrok;, &#x0142;, or &#322;) is used in HTML content; CSS entity \142 is used in stylesheets in the content property of pseudo-elements. All produce ł.

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About the author

Mari Selvan M P
Mari Selvan M P 🔗

Developer, cloud engineer, and technical writer

  • Experience 12 years building web and cloud systems
  • Focus Full Stack Development, AWS, and Developer Education

I write practical tutorials so students and working developers can learn by doing—from databases and APIs to deployment on AWS.

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