--- title: Base Templates and Blocks description: The base and block constructs allow you to define the outer shell of your master templates (i.e., the chrome of the page). categories: [templates,fundamentals] keywords: [blocks,base] menu: docs: parent: templates weight: 20 weight: 20 aliases: [/templates/blocks/,/templates/base-templates-and-blocks/] toc: true --- The `block` keyword allows you to define the outer shell of your pages' one or more master template(s) and then fill in or override portions as necessary. {{< youtube QVOMCYitLEc >}} ## Base Template Lookup Order The base template lookup order closely follows that of the template it applies to (e.g. `_default/list.html`). See [Template Lookup Order](/templates/lookup-order/) for details and examples. ## Define the Base Template The following defines a simple base template at `_default/baseof.html`. As a default template, it is the shell from which all your pages will be rendered unless you specify another `*baseof.html` closer to the beginning of the lookup order. {{< code file="layouts/_default/baseof.html" >}} {{ block "title" . }} <!-- Blocks may include default content. --> {{ .Site.Title }} {{ end }} {{ block "main" . }} {{ end }} {{ block "footer" . }} {{ end }} {{< /code >}} ## Override the Base Template From the above base template, you can define a [default list template][hugolists]. The default list template will inherit all of the code defined above and can then implement its own `"main"` block from: {{< code file="layouts/_default/list.html" >}} {{ define "main" }}

Posts

{{ range .Pages }}

{{ .Title }}

{{ .Content }}
{{ end }} {{ end }} {{< /code >}} This replaces the contents of our (basically empty) "main" block with something useful for the list template. In this case, we didn't define a `"title"` block, so the contents from our base template remain unchanged in lists. {{% note %}} Code that you put outside the block definitions *can* break your layout. This even includes HTML comments. For example: ```go-html-template {{ define "main" }} ...your code here {{ end }} ``` [See this thread from the Hugo discussion forums.](https://discourse.gohugo.io/t/baseof-html-block-templates-and-list-types-results-in-empty-pages/5612/6) {{% /note %}} The following shows how you can override both the `"main"` and `"title"` block areas from the base template with code unique to your [default single page template][singletemplate]: {{< code file="layouts/_default/single.html" >}} {{ define "title" }} {{ .Title }} – {{ .Site.Title }} {{ end }} {{ define "main" }}

{{ .Title }}

{{ .Content }} {{ end }} {{< /code >}} [hugolists]: /templates/lists [lookup]: /templates/lookup-order/ [rendering the section]: /templates/section-templates/ [singletemplate]: /templates/single-page-templates/