oncontextmenu

HTML (DHTML)

oncontextmenu Event

Internet Development Index

Fires when the user clicks the right mouse button in the client area, opening the context menu.

Syntax

Inline HTML<ELEMENT oncontextmenu = "handler" ... > All platforms
Event propertyobject.oncontextmenu = handlerJScript only
object.oncontextmenu = GetRef("handler")Visual Basic Scripting Edition (VBScript) 5.0 or later only
Named script <SCRIPT FOR = object EVENT = oncontextmenu> Internet Explorer only

Event Information

BubblesYes
CancelsYes
To invoke Right-click the object.
Default action Opens the context menu. To cancel the default behavior, set the returnValue property of the event object to false.

Event Object Properties

Although event handlers in the DHTML Object Model do not receive parameters directly, a handler can query an event object for data.

Available Properties

altKey Sets or retrieves a value that indicates the state of the ALT key.
altLeft Sets or retrieves a value that indicates the state of the left ALT key.
cancelBubble Sets or retrieves whether the current event should bubble up the hierarchy of event handlers.
clientX Sets or retrieves the x-coordinate of the mouse pointer's position relative to the client area of the window, excluding window decorations and scroll bars.
clientY Sets or retrieves the y-coordinate of the mouse pointer's position relative to the client area of the window, excluding window decorations and scroll bars.
ctrlKey Sets or retrieves the state of the CTRL key.
ctrlLeft Sets or retrieves the state of the left CTRL key.
offsetX Sets or retrieves the x-coordinate of the mouse pointer's position relative to the object firing the event.
offsetY Sets or retrieves the y-coordinate of the mouse pointer's position relative to the object firing the event.
returnValue Sets or retrieves the return value from the event.
screenX Retrieves the x-coordinate of the mouse pointer's position relative to the user's screen.
screenY Sets or retrieves the y-coordinate of the mouse pointer's position relative to the user's screen.
shiftKey Sets or retrieves the state of the SHIFT key.
shiftLeft Retrieves the state of the left SHIFT key.
srcElement Sets or retrieves the object that fired the event.
type Sets or retrieves the event name from the event object.
x Sets or retrieves the x-coordinate, in pixels, of the mouse pointer's position relative to a relatively positioned parent element.
y Sets or retrieves the y-coordinate, in pixels, of the mouse pointer's position relative to a relatively positioned parent element.

Example

This example shows how to prevent a context menu from appearing by canceling the oncontextmenu event handler.

<SPAN STYLE="width:300; background-color:blue; color:white;" oncontextmenu="return false">
<P>The context menu never displays when you right-click in this box.</P>
</SPAN>
This feature requires Microsoft® Internet Explorer 5 or later. Click the following icon to install the latest version. Then reload this page to view the sample.

Standards Information

There is no public standard that applies to this event.

Applies To

A, ADDRESS, APPLET, AREA, B, BDO, BIG, BLOCKQUOTE, BODY, BUTTON, CAPTION, CENTER, CITE, CODE, CUSTOM, DD, DFN, DIR, DIV, DL, document, DT, EM, EMBED, FIELDSET, FONT, FORM, hn, HR, I, IMG, INPUT type=button, INPUT type=checkbox, INPUT type=file, INPUT type=image, INPUT type=password, INPUT type=radio, INPUT type=reset, INPUT type=submit, INPUT type=text, KBD, LABEL, LEGEND, LI, LISTING, MARQUEE, MENU, nextID, NOBR, OL, P, PLAINTEXT, PRE, RT, RUBY, S, SAMP, SELECT, SMALL, SPAN, STRIKE, STRONG, SUB, SUP, TABLE, TBODY, TD, TEXTAREA, TFOOT, TH, THEAD, TR, TT, U, UL, VAR, XMP