# Markdown handling of whitespace in lists
**URL:** https://meta.discourse.org/t/markdown-handling-of-whitespace-in-lists/63767
**Category:** Support
**Created:** [01.Июнь.2017 20:22:09 UTC](https://meta.discourse.org/t/markdown-handling-of-whitespace-in-lists/63767 "2017-06-01T20:22:09Z")
**Posts on this page:** 7
**Page:** 1
### Author:  [@jmsachs](https://meta.discourse.org/u/jmsachs)
#### Post date: [01.Июнь.2017 20:22:09 UTC](https://meta.discourse.org/t/markdown-handling-of-whitespace-in-lists/63767/1 "2017-06-01T20:22:09Z")
Discourse Markdown seems to be quite a bit different than Stackoverflow Markdown and I’m wondering how to format some text properly when it’s in an extended numbered list. **Is there any way to create a blank line inside a numbered list element, so that the numbering doesn’t restart?**
In Stackoverflow, this markup text:
```plaintext
1. Hickory dickory dock,
the mouse ran up the clock
the clock struck one
the mouse ran down,
hickory dickory dock.
2. Mary had a little lamb
whose fleece was white as snow.
And everywhere that Mary went the lamb was sure to go.
```
produces this:
* * *
* * *
but in Discourse it looks like this:
* * *
1. Hickory dickory dock,
the mouse ran up the clock
the clock struck one
2. Mary had a little lamb
whose fleece was white as snow.
* * *
---
### Author:  [@jmsachs](https://meta.discourse.org/u/jmsachs)
#### Post date: [01.Июнь.2017 20:36:08 UTC](https://meta.discourse.org/t/markdown-handling-of-whitespace-in-lists/63767/2 "2017-06-01T20:36:08Z")
odd, I thought Discourse used [CommonMark](http://spec.commonmark.org/dingus/), which seems to match the StackOverflow behavior.
---
### Author:  [@tobiaseigen](https://meta.discourse.org/u/tobiaseigen)
#### Post date: [01.Июнь.2017 20:39:27 UTC](https://meta.discourse.org/t/markdown-handling-of-whitespace-in-lists/63767/3 "2017-06-01T20:39:27Z")
Probably unsatisfying, but you can get what you want with `
`, like this:
1. Hickory dickory dock,
the mouse ran up the clock
the clock struck one
the mouse ran down,
hickory dickory dock.
2. Mary had a little lamb
whose fleece was white as snow.
And everywhere that Mary went the lamb was sure to go.
Produced with this:
```
1. Hickory dickory dock,
the mouse ran up the clock
the clock struck one
the mouse ran down,
hickory dickory dock.
2. Mary had a little lamb
whose fleece was white as snow.
And everywhere that Mary went the lamb was sure to go.
```
---
### Author:  [@jmsachs](https://meta.discourse.org/u/jmsachs)
#### Post date: [01.Июнь.2017 20:39:55 UTC](https://meta.discourse.org/t/markdown-handling-of-whitespace-in-lists/63767/4 "2017-06-01T20:39:55Z")
ah – ok, thanks, that’s a good workaround for me.
---
### Author:  [@david](https://meta.discourse.org/u/david)
#### Post date: [01.Июнь.2017 20:44:11 UTC](https://meta.discourse.org/t/markdown-handling-of-whitespace-in-lists/63767/5 "2017-06-01T20:44:11Z")
> [@jmsachs](#):
>
> I thought Discourse used CommonMark
Not yet, it’s coming in the next version though 😃
> [@Discourse Version 1.9](https://meta.discourse.org/t/discourse-version-1-9/61289):
>
> Focuswhite_check_mark Update Emoji sets to latest, plus [Unicode 9.0 additions](http://emojipedia.org/unicode-9.0/) and skin tone support white_check_mark Watched words feature for blocking, censoring, or requiring approval for certain words appearing in posts white_check_mark Add required user fields to invite accept form white_check_mark Finally integrate CommonMark tada plus table support white_check_mark new Emoji selector derived from Twitter’s emoji picker white_check_mark Implement mini-onebox …
---
### Author:  [@codinghorror](https://meta.discourse.org/u/codinghorror)
#### Post date: [01.Июнь.2017 22:01:42 UTC](https://meta.discourse.org/t/markdown-handling-of-whitespace-in-lists/63767/6 "2017-06-01T22:01:42Z")
You can’t mix loose and tight lists in Markdown.
---
### Author:  [@sam](https://meta.discourse.org/u/sam)
#### Post date: [21.Февраль.2018 23:06:23 UTC](https://meta.discourse.org/t/markdown-handling-of-whitespace-in-lists/63767/7 "2018-02-21T23:06:23Z")