Link vs. Hyperlink — What's the Difference?
By Tayyaba Rehman — Updated on October 27, 2023
A link is a connection between two elements, while a hyperlink specifically refers to an electronic link directing to a webpage or document online.
Difference Between Link and Hyperlink
Table of Contents
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Key Differences
A link broadly refers to any connection or relationship between two things. A hyperlink is a specific type of link used in digital contexts to connect web pages or documents.
While links can be conceptual, physical, or digital, hyperlinks are exclusively digital, embedded in web content to navigate the internet.
Links are a general term in various fields like logistics, social science, and mechanics. Hyperlinks are specific to computing and the World Wide Web.
A link can be a chain link, a relational link, or a hyperlink. A hyperlink, however, is always an electronic link leading to other digital content.
In essence, all hyperlinks are links, but not all links are hyperlinks. Hyperlinks are a subset within the broader category of links.
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Comparison Chart
Definition
Connection between two elements
Electronic link to web content
Usage
Broad, various contexts
Specific, digital contexts
Types
Conceptual, physical, digital
Only digital
Scope
General term
Subset of links, specific to the internet
Application
Various fields
Computing, World Wide Web
Compare with Definitions
Link
A physical connector, like a chain link.
The bicycle's chain broke at the weakest link.
Hyperlink
A tool for navigating the internet.
Hyperlinks make it easy to explore related topics.
Link
A relational or conceptual connection.
There's a strong link between language and culture.
Hyperlink
A connection between web pages or content.
The blog post included a hyperlink to the author's profile.
Link
A digital connection, including hyperlinks.
You can find the link to the document in the email.
Hyperlink
An electronic link directing to a webpage.
Click the hyperlink to visit our homepage.
Link
One of the rings or loops forming a chain.
Hyperlink
A digital shortcut to other online resources.
The online article had hyperlinks to additional readings.
Link
A unit in a connected series of units
Links of sausage.
One link in a molecular chain.
Hyperlink
A clickable element in digital documents.
The report contained hyperlinks to the sources.
Link
A unit in a transportation or communications system.
Hyperlink
In computing, a hyperlink, or simply a link, is a reference to data that the user can follow by clicking or tapping. A hyperlink points to a whole document or to a specific element within a document.
Link
A connecting element; a tie or bond
Grandparents, our link with the past.
Hyperlink
See link1.
Link
An association; a relationship
The Alumnae Association is my link to the school's present administration.
Hyperlink
To make a hypertext link in (an electronic document or file).
Link
A causal, parallel, or reciprocal relationship; a correlation
Researchers have detected a link between smoking and heart disease.
Hyperlink
To follow a hypertext link to an electronic document or file.
Link
A cufflink.
Hyperlink
Some text or a graphic in an electronic document that can be activated to display another document or trigger an action.
Click the hyperlink to go to the next page.
Link
A unit of length used in surveying, equal to 0.01 chain, 7.92 inches, or about 20.12 centimeters.
Hyperlink
(by extension) The URL or other address that defines a hyperlink's target or function.
Copy the hyperlink and paste it into an email.
Link
A rod or lever transmitting motion in a machine.
Hyperlink
(of a hypertext document) To point to another document by a hyperlink.
Link
(Computers)A graphical item or segment of text in a webpage or other electronic document that, when clicked, causes another webpage or section of the same webpage to be displayed
That newspaper's homepage includes links to numerous government resources. Also called hotlink, hyperlink.
Hyperlink
To add a hyperlink to a document.
Link
A torch formerly used for lighting one's way in the streets.
Hyperlink
To use a hyperlink to jump to a document.
Link
To put together physically, as with links
Linked the rings to form a chain.
Hyperlink
A link from a hypertext file to another location or file; typically activated by clicking on a highlighted word or icon at a particular location on the screen
Link
To connect, relate, or associate
Linked the suspect to the crime.
Link
To make or have a link to (another webpage or electronic document)
The blog links important news stories from across the web.
Link
To make a link in (a webpage or electronic document)
The teacher linked the class website to an online map.
Link
To be or become joined together physically
The molecules linked to form a polymer.
Link
To be or become connected, related, or associated
Their business has linked up with ours.
Link
To make or have a link to a webpage or electronic document
The shocking news story was linked to by many blogs. The article linked to photos of the damage.
Link
To follow a link in a webpage or electronic document
With a click of the mouse, I linked to the museum's website.
Link
A connection between places, people, events, things, or ideas.
The mayor’s assistant serves as the link to the media.
Link
One element of a chain or other connected series.
The third link of the silver chain needs to be resoldered.
The weakest link.
Link
Abbreviation of hyperlink
The link on the page points to the sports scores.
Link
(computing) The connection between buses or systems.
A by-N-link is composed of N lanes.
Link
(mathematics) A space comprising one or more disjoint knots.
Link
(Sussex) a thin wild bank of land splitting two cultivated patches and often linking two hills.
Link
(figurative) an individual person or element in a system
Link
Anything doubled and closed like a link of a chain.
Link
A sausage that is not a patty.
Link
(kinematics) Any one of the several elementary pieces of a mechanism, such as the fixed frame, or a rod, wheel, mass of confined liquid, etc., by which relative motion of other parts is produced and constrained.
Link
(engineering) Any intermediate rod or piece for transmitting force or motion, especially a short connecting rod with a bearing at each end; specifically (in steam engines) the slotted bar, or connecting piece, to the opposite ends of which the eccentric rods are jointed, and by means of which the movement of the valve is varied, in a link motion.
Link
(surveying) The length of one joint of Gunter's chain, being the hundredth part of it, or 7.92 inches, the chain being 66 feet in length.
Link
(chemistry) A bond of affinity, or a unit of valence between atoms; applied to a unit of chemical force or attraction.
Link
(in the plural) The windings of a river; the land along a winding stream.
Link
(broadcasting) An introductory cue.
Link
(obsolete) A torch, used to light dark streets.
Link
(transitive) To connect two or more things.
Link
To contain a hyperlink to another page.
My homepage links to my wife's.
Link
To supply (somebody) with a hyperlink; to direct by means of a link.
Haven't you seen his Web site? I'll link you to it.
Link
To post a hyperlink to.
Stop linking those unfunny comics all the time!
Link
(transitive) To demonstrate a correlation between two things.
Link
(compilation) To combine objects generated by a compiler into a single executable.
Link
To meet with someone.
Link
To skip or trip along smartly; to go quickly.
Link
A torch made of tow and pitch, or the like.
Link
A single ring or division of a chain.
Link
Hence: Anything, whether material or not, which binds together, or connects, separate things; a part of a connected series; a tie; a bond.
The link of brotherhood, by whichOne common Maker bound me to the kind.
And so by double links enchained themselves in lover's life.
Link
Anything doubled and closed like a link; as, a link of horsehair.
Link
Any one of the several elementary pieces of a mechanism, as the fixed frame, or a rod, wheel, mass of confined liquid, etc., by which relative motion of other parts is produced and constrained.
Link
Any intermediate rod or piece for transmitting force or motion, especially a short connecting rod with a bearing at each end; specifically (Steam Engine), the slotted bar, or connecting piece, to the opposite ends of which the eccentric rods are jointed, and by means of which the movement of the valve is varied, in a link motion.
Link
A bond of affinity, or a unit of valence between atoms; - applied to a unit of chemical force or attraction.
Link
Sausages; - because linked together.
Link
A hill or ridge, as a sand hill, or a wooded or turfy bank between cultivated fields, etc.
Link
A winding of a river; also, the ground along such a winding; a meander; - usually in pl.
The windings or "links" of the Forth above and below Stirling are extremely tortuous.
Link
Sand hills with the surrounding level or undulating land, such as occur along the seashore, a river bank, etc.
Golf may be played on any park or common, but its original home is the "links" or common land which is found by the seashore, where the short close tuft, the sandy subsoil, and the many natural obstacles in the shape of bents, whins, sand holes, and banks, supply the conditions which are essential to the proper pursuit of the game.
Link
Hence, any such piece of ground where golf is played; a golf course.
Link
To connect or unite with a link or as with a link; to join; to attach; to unite; to couple.
All the tribes and nations that composed it [the Roman Empire] were linked together, not only by the same laws and the same government, but by all the facilities of commodious intercourse, and of frequent communication.
Link
To be connected.
No one generation could link with the other.
Link
The means of connection between things linked in series
Link
A fastener that serves to join or link;
The walls are held together with metal links placed in the wet mortar during construction
Link
The state of being connected;
The connection between church and state is inescapable
Link
A connecting shape
Link
A unit of length equal to 1/100 of a chain
Link
(computing) an instruction that connects one part of a program or an element on a list to another program or list
Link
A channel for communication between groups;
He provided a liaison with the guerrillas
Link
A two-way radio communication system (usually microwave); part of a more extensive telecommunication network
Link
An interconnecting circuit between two or more locations for the purpose of transmitting and receiving data
Link
Make a logical or causal connection;
I cannot connect these two pieces of evidence in my mind
Colligate these facts
I cannot relate these events at all
Link
Connect, fasten, or put together two or more pieces;
Can you connect the two loudspeakers?
Tie the ropes together
Link arms
Link
Be or become joined or united or linked;
The two streets connect to become a highway
Our paths joined
The travelers linked up again at the airport
Link
Link with or as with a yoke;
Yoke the oxen together
Link
A connection between two elements.
The link between diet and health is well-established.
Link
A connecting part or stage in a process.
The distribution center is a crucial link in the supply chain.
Common Curiosities
Are all links hyperlinks?
No, hyperlinks are a specific type of link in digital contexts.
Is every hyperlink a link?
Yes, all hyperlinks are a form of link.
Is the term link used in computing?
Yes, but it's broader than just hyperlinks.
What makes a hyperlink unique?
Its functionality to direct users to other web content.
Can I have a hyperlink in a printed book?
No, hyperlinks are exclusively for digital use.
Can hyperlinks break?
Yes, leading to what's known as a "dead link."
Can links be non-digital?
Yes, links can be conceptual, physical, or digital.
What's the common use of links?
They're used to connect or relate different elements.
Are hyperlinks always clickable?
In digital contexts, yes, they're designed to be clickable.
Can links exist in speech?
Conceptual or relational links can, but not hyperlinks.
Do all websites have hyperlinks?
Most do, as they're essential for navigation.
Are links important in supply chains?
Yes, as they connect different stages of the process.
Can a hyperlink lead to a non-web document?
Yes, it can link to downloadable files or documents.
Is hyperlinking a modern concept?
Yes, it emerged with the development of the web.
Are hyperlinks used in academic papers?
In digital formats, yes, for referencing sources.
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Written by
Tayyaba RehmanTayyaba Rehman is a distinguished writer, currently serving as a primary contributor to askdifference.com. As a researcher in semantics and etymology, Tayyaba's passion for the complexity of languages and their distinctions has found a perfect home on the platform. Tayyaba delves into the intricacies of language, distinguishing between commonly confused words and phrases, thereby providing clarity for readers worldwide.
