css - Why use definition lists (DL,DD,DT) tags for HTML forms instead of tables?

Question

I've come across a few examples recently that do things like:

<dl>
  <dt>Full Name:</dt>
  <dd><input type="text" name="fullname"></dd>
  <dt>Email Address:</dt>
  <dd><input type="text" name="email"></dd>
</dl>

for doing HTML forms. Why is that? What is the advantage over using tables?

Answer 1

I guess it's up to you to determine the semantics, but in my opinion:

Rather than a definition list, form-related properties should be used.

<form>
  <label for="fullname">Full Name:</label>
  <input type="text" name="fullname" id="fullname">
  <label for="email">Email Address:</label>
  <input type="text" name="email" id="email">
</form>

The "for" attribute in the <label> tag should reference the "id" attribute of a <input> tag. Note that when labels are associated with fields, clicking the label will put the associated field in focus.

You can also use tags like <fieldset> to cluster sections of a form together and <legend> to caption a fieldset.