---
title: Parent
description: Returns the parent shortcode context in nested shortcodes.
categories: []
keywords: []
params:
  functions_and_methods:
    returnType: hugolib.ShortcodeWithPage
    signatures: [SHORTCODE.Parent]
---

This is useful for inheritance of common shortcode arguments from the root.

In this contrived example, the "greeting" shortcode is the parent, and the "now" shortcode is child.

```md {file="content/welcome.md"}
{{</* greeting dateFormat="Jan 2, 2006" */>}}
Welcome. Today is {{</* now */>}}.
{{</* /greeting */>}}
```

```go-html-template {file="layouts/_shortcodes/greeting.html"}
<div class="greeting">
  {{ .Inner | strings.TrimSpace | .Page.RenderString }}
</div>
```

```go-html-template {file="layouts/_shortcodes/now.html"}
{{- $dateFormat := "January 2, 2006 15:04:05" }}

{{- with .Params }}
  {{- with .dateFormat }}
    {{- $dateFormat = . }}
  {{- end }}
{{- else }}
  {{- with .Parent.Params }}
    {{- with .dateFormat }}
      {{- $dateFormat = . }}
    {{- end }}
  {{- end }}
{{- end }}

{{- now | time.Format $dateFormat -}}
```

The "now" shortcode formats the current time using:

1. The `dateFormat` argument passed to the "now" shortcode, if present
1. The `dateFormat` argument passed to the "greeting" shortcode, if present
1. The default layout string defined at the top of the shortcode
