mask

The mask attribute is a presentation attribute mainly used to bind a given <mask> element with the element the attribute belong to.

Note: As a presentation attribute mask can be used as a CSS property.

<svg viewBox="0 0 200 100" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2000/svg">
  <mask id="myMask" maskContentUnits="objectBoundingBox">
    <rect    fill="white" x="0" y="0" width="100%" height="100%" />
    <polygon fill="black" points="0.5,0.2 0.68,0.74 0.21,0.41 0.79,0.41 0.32,0.74" />
  </mask>

  <!--
  Punch a hole in a shape of a star inside the red circle,
  revealing the yellow circle underneath
  -->
  <circle cx="50" cy="50" r="20" fill="yellow" />
  <circle cx="50" cy="50" r="45" fill="red"
          mask="url(#myMask)"/>
</svg>

Since SVG2, the mask attribute is defined as a css property and is a shorthand for many other properties: mask-image, mask-mode, mask-repeat, mask-position, mask-clip, mask-origin, mask-size, and mask-composite.

As a presentation attribute, it can be applied to any element but it has noticeable effects mostly on the following nineteenth elements: <a>, <circle>, <clipPath>, <ellipse>, <g>, <glyph>, <image>, <line>, <marker>, <mask>, <path>, <pattern>, <polygon>, <polyline>, <rect>, <svg>, <symbol>, <text>, <use>

Usage context

Browser compatibilityUpdate compatibility data on GitHub

Specifications