jQuery .prevUntil() Method

Posted in jQuery Tutorial

Updated on May 09, 2024

By Mari Selvan

👁️ 5 - Views

⏳ 4 mins

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Photo Credit to CodeToFun

🙋 Introduction

jQuery offers a vast array of methods to navigate and manipulate the DOM (Document Object Model) efficiently. One such method is the .prevUntil() method, which allows you to select all preceding siblings of an element up to, but not including, a specified selector, element, or jQuery object. Understanding and mastering this method can greatly enhance your ability to traverse and manipulate DOM elements dynamically.

In this guide, we will explore the usage of the jQuery .prevUntil() method with clear examples to illustrate its functionality.

🧠 Understanding .prevUntil() Method

The .prevUntil() method in jQuery selects all preceding sibling elements of the specified element until the condition specified by the selector, element, or jQuery object is met. It traverses upwards in the DOM hierarchy, starting from the given element, until it encounters the stopping condition.

💡 Syntax

The syntax for the .prevUntil() method is straightforward:

syntax.js

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$(selector).prevUntil(stopSelector, filter)

Parameters:

selector: A string containing a selector expression to indicate the starting point for the traversal.
stopSelector (Optional): A string containing a selector expression, DOM element, or jQuery object that serves as the stopping point for the traversal. Elements matching this selector will not be included in the selection.
filter (Optional): A string containing a selector expression to filter the elements that match the preceding siblings.

📝 Example

Selecting Preceding Siblings Up to a Stop Selector:

Suppose you have a list of items, and you want to select all the preceding siblings of a specific item until you reach an element with a certain class. You can achieve this using the .prevUntil() method as follows:
index.html
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```
<ul>
  <li>Item 1</li>
  <li class="stop">Item 2</li>
  <li>Item 3</li>
  <li>Item 4</li>
  <li>Item 5</li>
</ul>
```
example.js
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```
$("li.stop").prevUntil("li:first").css("color", "red");
```
This will select all preceding siblings of the <li> element with the class stop until the first <li> element and apply a red color to their text.
Filtering Selected Elements:

You can further refine the selection by applying a filter to the preceding siblings. For instance, let's select only the list items that contain a specific text:
index.html
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```
<ul>
  <li>Apple</li>
  <li>Banana</li>
  <li class="stop">Cherry</li>
  <li>Orange</li>
  <li>Strawberry</li>
</ul>
```
example.js
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```
$("li.stop").prevUntil("li:first", ":contains('Banana')").css("font-weight", "bold");
```
This will select all preceding siblings of the <li> element with the class stop until the first <li> element containing the text "Banana" and make their text bold.

🎉 Conclusion

The jQuery .prevUntil() method provides a powerful mechanism for selecting and manipulating preceding sibling elements in the DOM hierarchy. Whether you need to traverse up to a certain point, filter the selected elements, or apply specific actions to them, this method offers flexibility and efficiency.

By mastering its usage, you can streamline DOM traversal and manipulation tasks in your web development projects effectively.