Markdown syntax guide
Based on the Markdown syntax guide, by Fletcher T. Penney
Written in and generated with Byword (view source)
Phrase Emphasis
*italic* **bold**
_italic_ __bold__
Shortcuts
- ⌘B : Add/remove bold
Inserts four asterisks and places the caret in the middle.
If a range of text is selected, it will either be surrounded by two pairs of asterisks or have its leading and trailing asterisks removed. - ⌘I : Add/remove italic
Same as above.
Links
Inline:
An [example](http://url.com/ "Title")
Reference-style labels (titles are optional):
An [example][id]. Then, anywhere
else in the doc, define the link:
[id]: http://example.com/ "Title"
Byword allows you to drag and drop links directly into the text. An inline link reference will be generated.
Shortcuts
- ⌘K : Add link
Inserts an inline link. Caret is placed inside square brackets, by default.
If a range of text is selected and it is recognized as a URL, it will be placed inside parenthesis. If a range of text is selected and it is not a URL, it will be considered the title and placed between the square brackets.
Images
Inline (titles are optional):

Reference-style:
![alt text][id]
[id]: /url/to/img.jpg "Title"
Byword allows you to drag and drop images directly into the text. An inline image reference will be generated.
Shortcuts
- ⌥⌘I : Add image
Inserts an inline image reference. Caret is placed inside the square brackets, by default.
If a range of text is selected and it is recognized as an image URL, it will be placed inside the parenthesis. If a range of text is selected and it is not an image URL, it will be considered the image title and placed between the square brackets.
Headers
Setext-style:
Header 1
========
Header 2
--------
atx-style (closing #’s are optional):
# Header 1 #
## Header 2 ##
###### Header 6
Shortcuts
- ⌘+ : Add atx-style header (or increase header level)
- ⌘- : Remove atx-style header (or decrease header level)
Lists
Ordered, without paragraphs:
1. Foo
2. Bar
Unordered, with paragraphs:
* A list item.
With multiple paragraphs.
* Bar
You can nest them:
* Abacus
* answer
* Bubbles
1. bunk
2. bupkis
* BELITTLER
3. burper
* Cunning
Shortcuts
- ⌘L : Create an unordered list
- ⌥Enter : Add another entry to the list (if caret is placed on a list item)
Blockquotes
> Email-style angle brackets
> are used for blockquotes.
> > And, they can be nested.
> #### Headers in blockquotes
>
> * You can quote a list.
> * Etc.
Shortcuts
- ⌘’ : Start a blockquote (or convert line at caret to a blockquote)
Code Spans
`<code>` spans are delimited
by backticks.
You can include literal backticks
like `` `this` ``.
Pre-formatted Code Blocks
Indent every line of a code block by at least 4 spaces or 1 tab.
This is a normal paragraph.
This is a preformatted
code block.
Horizontal Rules
Three or more dashes or asterisks:
---
* * *
- - - -
Manual Line Breaks
End a line with two or more spaces:
Roses are red,
Violets are blue.