Spacing in CSS between the menu and its submenu elements

My current challenge involves creating space between the menu and the submenu. However, I've noticed that when there is this space, the submenu doesn't function correctly. It only works when the design has no gap between the menu and the submenu.

How can I maintain the spacing while ensuring that the submenu remains functional?

Here is my code:

JSFIDDLE CODE

HTML Code:

<body>
<nav>
    <ul>
        <li><a href="#">One</a>
            <ul>
                <li><a href="1.html">1.1</a></li>
                <li><a href="2.html">1.2</a>
            </ul>
        </li>
        <li><a href="#">Two</a>
            <ul>
                <li><a href="3.html">2.1</a></li>
                <li><a href="4.html">2.2</a></li>
                <li><a href="5.html">2.3</a></li>
            </ul>
        </li>
        <li><a href="#">Three</a>
            <ul>
                <li><a href="6.html">3.1</a></li>
                <li><a href="7.html">3.2</a></li>
            </ul>
        </li>
        <li><a href="8.html">Four</a></li>
    </ul>
</nav>
</body>

CSS Code:

body {
    background-color: #cac3bc
}
nav {
    float: left;
}
nav ul ul {
    display: none;
}
nav ul li:hover > ul {
    display: block;
}
nav ul {
    background-color: #fff;
    margin-top: 10px;
    padding: 0 20px;  
    list-style: none;
    position: relative;
    display: inline-table;
    margin-right: -80px;
}
nav ul li {
    float: left;
}
nav ul li:hover {
    border-bottom: 5px solid #f5aa65;
    color: #fff;
}
nav ul li a:hover {
    color: #000;
}

nav ul li a {
    display: block; 
    padding: 15px 15px;
    font-family: 'PT Sans', sans-serif;
    color: #000; 
    text-decoration: none;
}
nav ul ul {
    background-color:#fff;
    border-radius: 0px; 
    padding: 0;
    position: absolute;
    top: 100%;
    box-shadow: 0px 0px 9px rgba(0,0,0,0.15);
}
nav ul ul li {
    float: none; 
    position: relative;
}
nav ul ul li a {
    padding: 15px 40px;
    color: #000;
}

Answer №1

If you want to increase the clickable area for hovering, you can utilize the :before pseudo-element:

nav ul ul:before {
    content: "";
    display: block;
    height: 20px;
    position: absolute;
    top: -20px;
    width: 100%;
}

Check out this demonstration.

Answer №2

The solution provided as the accepted answer is elegantly simple and flawless. However, I would like to suggest an alternative approach for individuals facing a similar situation where they need to modify the existing solution. In my case, I needed my sub menu to be full width, so I utilized absolute positioning on the sub menu to ensure it starts just below the main menu. I also incorporated the :before pseudo-element to create a 100px gap. Here is the code snippet:

// Create a 100px gap between the main menu and submenu.
        &:hover ul.sub-menu:before {
            content: "";
            display: block;
            // Please note that this height value is calculated from the top: 100% of the absolutely positioned ul.sub-menu,
            // effectively pushing down the sub-menu by the specified height.
            height: 100px;
            width: 100%;
            background-color: transparent;
        }

To position the sub-menu absolutely below the main menu and ensure it occupies the full width, you can use the following code:

   &:hover ul.sub-menu {
            background-color: transparent;
            display: block;
            position: absolute;
            border-top: 10px solid red;
            top: 100%;
            left: 0;
            width: 100%;
            // This ensures the sub-menu appears above the main menu.
            z-index: 1;
enter code here

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