	Tkinter Widget Overview
	Copyright © 1997 by Fredrik Lundh <[email protected]>
	Updated 9 Nov 1997

The Label Widget

The Label widget is a standard Tkinter widget used to display a text or image on the screen. The button can only display text in a single font, but the text may span more than one line. In addition, one of the characters can be underlined, for example to mark a keyboard shortcut.

Label Patterns

To use a label, you just have to specify what to display in it (this can be text, a bitmap, or an image):

w = Label(master, text="Hello, world!")

If you don't specify a size, the label is made just large enough to hold its contents. You can also use the height and width options to explicitly set the size. If you display text in the label, these options define the size of the label in text units. If you display bitmaps or images instead, they define the size in pixels (or other screen units). See the Button description for an example how to specify the size in pixels also for text labels.

You can specify which color to use for the label with the foreground (or fg) and background (or bg) options. You can also choose which font to use in the label (the following example uses Tk 8.0 font descriptors). Use colors and fonts sparingly; unless you have a good reason to do otherwise, you should stick to the default values.

w = Label(master, text="Rouge", fg="red")
w = Label(master, text="Helvetica", font=("Helvetica", 16))

Labels can display multiple lines of text. You can use newlines or use the wraplength option to make the label wrap text by itself. When wrapping text, you might wish to use the anchor and justify options to make things look exactly as you wish. An example:

w = Label(master, text=longtext, anchor=W, justify=LEFT)

You can associate a variable with the label. When the contents of the variable changes, the label is automatically updated:

v = StringVar()
Label(master, textvariable=v).pack()
v.set("New Text!")

Methods

The Label widget supports the standard Tkinter Widget interface. There are no additional methods.

Options

The following options can be used for the Label widget.

Option Type Description

anchor constant Controls where in the label the text (or image) should be located. Use one of N, NE, E, SE, S, SW, W, NW, or CENTER. Default is CENTER.

background or bg, foreground or fg color The label color. The default is platform specific.

bitmap bitmap name The bitmap to display in the widget. If the image option is given, this option is ignored.

borderwidth or bd integer The width of the label border. The default is no border.

cursor cursor name The cursor to show when the mouse is moved over the label.

font font The font to use in the label. The label can only contain text in a single font.

image image The image to display in the widget. If specified, this takes precedence over the text and bitmap options.

justify constant Defines how to align multiple lines of text. Use LEFT, RIGHT, or CENTER.

relief constant Label border relief. The default is FLAT. Other possible values are SUNKEN, RAISED, GROOVE, and RIDGE.

text string The text to display in the label. The text can contain newlines. If the bitmap or image options are used, this option is ignored.

textvariable variable Associates a Tkinter variable (usually a StringVar) to the label. If the variable is changed, the label text is updated.

underline int Default is -1.

width, height int The size of the label. If the label displays text, the size is given in text units. If the label displays an image, the size is given in pixels (or screen units). If the size is omitted, it is calculated based on the label contents.

wraplength int Determines when a label's text should be wrapped into multiple lines. This is given in screen units. Default is no wrapping.

Option	Type	Description
anchor	constant	Controls where in the label the text (or image) should be located. Use one of N, NE, E, SE, S, SW, W, NW, or CENTER. Default is CENTER.
background or bg, foreground or fg	color	The label color. The default is platform specific.
bitmap	bitmap name	The bitmap to display in the widget. If the image option is given, this option is ignored.
borderwidth or bd	integer	The width of the label border. The default is no border.
cursor	cursor name	The cursor to show when the mouse is moved over the label.
font	font	The font to use in the label. The label can only contain text in a single font.
image	image	The image to display in the widget. If specified, this takes precedence over the text and bitmap options.
justify	constant	Defines how to align multiple lines of text. Use LEFT, RIGHT, or CENTER.
relief	constant	Label border relief. The default is FLAT. Other possible values are SUNKEN, RAISED, GROOVE, and RIDGE.
text	string	The text to display in the label. The text can contain newlines. If the bitmap or image options are used, this option is ignored.
textvariable	variable	Associates a Tkinter variable (usually a StringVar) to the label. If the variable is changed, the label text is updated.
underline	int	Default is -1.
width, height	int	The size of the label. If the label displays text, the size is given in text units. If the label displays an image, the size is given in pixels (or screen units). If the size is omitted, it is calculated based on the label contents.
wraplength	int	Determines when a label's text should be wrapped into multiple lines. This is given in screen units. Default is no wrapping.