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Glossary
MCP

MCP

MCP (Model Context Protocol) is an open standard that lets AI agents connect to external tools and data sources through a common interface, instead of every tool needing its own custom integration. An AI agent that supports MCP can discover what actions a connected tool offers and use them directly.

Webflow has its own MCP server, which lets AI agents read and build directly in a site's Designer and CMS. Early versions required a live Designer session open in the browser to work, but as of Webflow MCP 2.0, most workflows, like managing CMS content, components and their props, and styles, run directly against the Data API instead, with no bridge app required.

Relevant courses

A glowing AI sparkle icon within a deconstructed pink neon box

AI guardrails for teams

Manage team AI access, understand the reach of AI-assisted changes, and review what changed before your site goes live.

Collaborate with your team

Learn how to set up roles, permissions, and workflows in Webflow so your entire team can work together safely, confidently, and efficiently.

Design & manage CMS content in Webflow

Learn how to create, manage, and style dynamic content and collections on your site using Webflow’s CMS.

Webflow 101

Introducing Webflow 101, the ultimate course to learn the fundamentals of web design and development.
Comment cursor hovering over a text box

Webflow for Reviewers

Learn how to review and give feedback with confidence in Webflow.
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Webflow for Marketers

Learn how to build, edit, and publish with confidence in Webflow.

Other glossary terms

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Designer

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The main interface where you can build sites.

States dropdown menu

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The dropdown menu to the right of the Selector field that allows you to access and change the styles of an element when it is hovered, pressed, or focused.

A/B testing

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A/B testing compares two different versions of something — like a web page or campaign — to determine which performs better.

Anti-flicker

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Anti-flicker is a technique that hides content until it's ready to display correctly, preventing visitors from briefly seeing something that's about to change.

Behavioral targeting

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Behavioral targeting is a marketing technique that leverages user data to deliver personalized ads to drive conversions.

Single Instruction Single Data (SISD)

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Single Instruction and Single Data Stream (SISD) is a computer architecture where a central processing unit (CPU) executes one instruction at a time on a single data piece.

Display: flex

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The most flexible display property in CSS is the aptly named display: flex, which allows you to create flexible layouts with elements that you can align and distribute vertically or horizontally.

Return on investment (ROI)

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Return on investment (ROI) is a metric evaluating the profitability or gain of a venture.

SVG (Scalable Vector Graphics)

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Scalable Vector Graphics, or SVG, is a file format for displaying scalable vector graphics on the web.

Single-page publishing

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Single-page publishing lets you publish changes to one page without republishing the rest of the site, useful for quick fixes on large sites.

MCP

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MCP (Model Context Protocol) is an open standard that lets AI agents connect to and act within external tools and data sources, like reading or editing a Webflow site.

Synchronous

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Synchronous programming refers to sequentially executed operations.

RSS

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Really Simple Syndication (RSS) is a web format that automatically distributes frequently updated content to subscribers, eliminating the need for subscribers to check the website manually to stay up to date.

User interface (UI)

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A user interface (UI) is any visual element humans interact with on a device, webpage, or application.

Deployment

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In software and web development, deployment is the process of moving code from one environment to another, usually in the form of changes or updates.

AJAX

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Asynchronous JavaScript and XML (AJAX) is a web development approach that combines technologies to allow web content to update without reloading.

Bottom padding

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Bottom padding is the space between the bottom of an element and its border.

Hotlink

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A hotlink — also known as a remote or inline link — is a hyperlink that directs to a resource, such as an image or a file, without the owner’s explicit permission.

Object-oriented programming (OOP)

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Object-oriented programming (OOP) is a programming approach that organizes code into self-contained units of data, functions, and behavior.

Control flow

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The control flow is the order in which a computer program executes its instructions or statements, guided by control structures.

Valid

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A valid CSS pseudo-class is a keyword that enables styling HTML elements based on their state or position in the document structure or web page.

Forms section

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A section of the Add panel that houses form elements like inputs, checkboxes, and radio buttons.

Last published

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The last time your site was published.

Media section

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A section of the Add panel that holds multimedia elements like images, video, and Lottie animation.

List

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An element that contains ordered (numbered) or unordered (bulleted) lists.

Element

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Elements are individual HTML components that constitute a webpage’s structure and contents.

Beacon

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A beacon — also called a web beacon or web bug — is an HTML-embedded object that tracks user behavior on a web page.

Bottom bar

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A bottom bar is a navigation bar at the bottom of an app or webpage.

Style Manager

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The third tab in the right-side panel where you can rename element classes, preview your class and tag styles, search for classes and tags, and delete any classes that aren’t in use.

Parent

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The element directly above in the hierarchy tree.

Encapsulation

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Encapsulation is an object-oriented programming (OOP) process that combines functions and the data they manipulate into a single entity.

Backup

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A backup is a copy of data stored in an alternate location, including hard drives, cloud servers, or network-attached storage (NAS) servers.

Favicon

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A 16x16 px image that displays in browser tabs, bookmarks, and other browser areas. It's typically a simplified version of the site's logo.

CRUD

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CRUD stands for Create, Read, Update, and Delete — the four basic operations all software applications should perform.

Custom domain hosting

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A Webflow service that lets you point a custom domain to your Webflow-hosted site.

UI state

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The UI state changes how Collection lists display when you’re designing. The Items state is the default option, and shows the items that you have within the Collection. The Empty state doesn’t show these items and gives the designer the opportunity to design for a circumstance if/when there is no data to be displayed in the Collection list.

Flex-direction

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Flex-direction is a CSS property that defines the main axis and direction of flex items, dictating the arrangement of the items within a flex container.

Static page

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A static page is a document with fixed content that makes up an individual web page on your site.

Algorithm

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An algorithm is a set of rules or steps that help solve problems or carry out specific tasks.

Typography section

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A section in the Style panel that houses CSS properties related to how typography is displayed such as font, font size and height, and align.

Account notifications

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Account notifications update you about activity in your account. New notifications appear on your Webflow Dashboard after you log in.

URL

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A Uniform Resource Locator (URL) is a standardized web address format that allows users to identify and access an online resource.

Modal window

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A modal window (or modal) is a web element that displays above all content and restricts user interaction until it’s manually dismissed.

Breadcrumb

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A breadcrumb, or breadcrumb trail, is a navigational element representing a user’s current location within a website's hierarchical structure.

Hit

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A hit is a request to a web server from a browser for a specific resource.

Flex-order

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In CSS, flex-order is a property that allows you to manipulate the default source order of the items within a flex container. Flex-order is especially useful when you want content to display differently on mobile than on desktop.

Maximum width (max width)

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The “max-width” CSS property defines an element’s maximum width.

GIF

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A GIF (Graphics Interchange Format) is a digital image format that uses multiple frames of an image or soundless video to create a short, looping animation.

Parent folder

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A parent folder is a directory containing one or more folders and files.

Display: inline

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The display: inline CSS property is a display option that controls an element’s appearance and layout.

Middleware

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Middleware is software that links different programs and applications, allowing them to interact and communicate effectively.

Rich text field

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A rich text field is an input tool for formatting or applying text styles, such as bold, colors, font sizes, italics, underline, and other visual modifications.

Utility pages

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Utility pages are default, customizable templates for your site’s 404 page, Password page, and Search results page.

Made in Webflow

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Made in Webflow showcases Webflow sites made by individuals and teams.

Collection limits

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By default, Collection lists display all items in a Collection, but you can add limits to control the number of Collection items that display.

Content optimization system (COS)

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A content optimization system (COS) is software that lets you optimize website content to attract more traffic.

Transfer site

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You can transfer sites from one Workspace to another Workspace.

Callback function

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A callback function is passed as an argument to another function and executed upon completing the latter’s task.

Height

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Defines how tall an element can be. This can be defined in absolute terms (pixels) or relative terms (ems, rems, percentages, viewport-height, or viewport-width).

Form block

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Form blocks allow you to add form elements to a website, including appointment booking, surveys, applications, polls, and contact forms.

Site plan

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A Webflow plan that you can add/apply to individual sites. You’ll receive access to different site and hosting features based on your Site plan.

Canvas

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The <canvas> tag in HTML5 creates a container for dynamic graphics and image rendering on a webpage.

Required field

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You can set any Collection field as "Required," which means that a value must be added to that field in the Collection item before it can be published. The only Collection field that cannot be made required is the Switch field.

Text block

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A typography element that is used when no other element is specifically suitable.

Percent

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A measurement unit relative to an element's parent.

Unpublished change

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A change that has been made in the Webflow Editor but will not appear on the live website until it’s published. You can track any unpublished changes on the bottom right of the Editor toolbar.

.htaccess

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.htaccess is a powerful configuration file that allows you to configure and control how your website functions.

Page name

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The title of a page in your site. This is visible in the Pages panel.

Localization

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Localization (l10n) involves adapting digital content and applications to meet a specific region or culture’s language and conventions.

Structured Query Language (SQL)

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Structured Query Language (SQL) is a programming language that enables storing, retrieving, and manipulating information in a relational database.

Google Universal Analytics Tracking ID

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A unique ID you can use to link your Google Analytics account to your Webflow site.

Form button

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A form element that lets website visitors submit data to your form handler.

CMS section

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A section in the Add panel that contains elements associated with the CMS.

Homepage

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The page people see when they visit your site's root domain. Read more about the homepage.

Height: auto

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The "height: auto" CSS property automatically adjusts an element’s height based on its content.

Left To Right (LTR)

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Left To Right (LTR) describes a text layout that starts from the left and proceeds to the right.

Pixel

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A pixel (px) is the smallest unit of measure in a digital image or display, representing a single point of color or light.

Common targets

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All elements on the page targeted by the same selector.

Text area

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A form element that allows site visitors to enter multi-line data.

Java

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Java is an object-oriented programming language for building dynamic, interactive web applications across platforms

Tabs

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A Webflow component that displays a pane of content associated with a tab menu button.

Baseline

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The baseline is the fixed invisible line that serves as the base for letters. It’s used as a measurement for line height and x-height.

Margin

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Margins are an essential spacing element of web design, dictating the amount of whitespace between a box and its surroundings.

Element edges

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The color-coded borders of elements you'll see in the Webflow Designer.

HyperText Markup Language (HTML)

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A standard markup language that web browsers use to display websites.

Empty elements

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Empty or void elements are HTML elements that don’t require a closing tag because they contain no content.

Video

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A Webflow element that displays externally hosted videos such as YouTube and Vimeo.

Cipher

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In cryptography, a cipher is a digital security algorithm that encrypts and decrypts data.

Webflow Editor

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Webflow's visual content editor. You can access it through the Webflow Dashboard by clicking the “3 disclosure dots” on a site thumbnail, then clicking “Editor.” Guest editors can access it anywhere on their live site by adding ?edit after the page URL (e.g., yoursite.com/page/?edit).

Slider

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A slider is an interactive design element for scrolling through images, videos, and other multimedia content.

Document type definition (DTD)

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A document type definition (DTD) defines the structure, validity, and attributes of standard generalized markup language (SGML) documents, such as GML, HTML, and XML.

PNG (Portable Network Graphics)

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PNG, short for Portable Network Graphics, is a lossless image format known for its transparency support and quality retention after compression.

Effects

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A section in the Style panel that houses CSS properties for changing how an element appears, such as its opacity, outline, and box shadows.

Descriptor

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A CSS descriptor sets specific properties and values of an at-rule (@-rule) element, dictating its appearance and behavior on a web page.

Publish site

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The act of updating your live site to reflect new design changes.

Flex child

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An element contained within a parent element that has display: flex set.

Background

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A website background is a visual element behind webpage content, enhancing aesthetic appeal and user engagement.

Flex-align

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A flexbox property that lets you customize the alignment behavior of flex children, based on the cross-axis of the flex container. The cross axis is the opposite of the flex-direction property, so if you set the direction to vertical, the cross axis is horizontal. Options include start, center, end, baseline, and stretch.

Domain-Specific Language (DSL)

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A Domain-Specific Language (DSL) is computer script that solves software problems in a specific domain.

Top of the funnel

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Top of the funnel (TOFU) refers to the initial marketing funnel stage where potential customers become aware of a brand’s existence.
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