GtkMenuItem: GTK+ 3 Reference Manual

## GtkMenuItem GtkMenuItem — The widget used for item in menus |

## Functions

GtkWidget * | gtk_menu_item_new ()
GtkWidget * | gtk_menu_item_new_with_label ()
GtkWidget * | gtk_menu_item_new_with_mnemonic ()
void | gtk_menu_item_set_right_justified ()
gboolean | gtk_menu_item_get_right_justified ()
const gchar * | gtk_menu_item_get_label ()
void | gtk_menu_item_set_label ()
gboolean | gtk_menu_item_get_use_underline ()
void | gtk_menu_item_set_use_underline ()
void | gtk_menu_item_set_submenu ()
GtkWidget * | gtk_menu_item_get_submenu ()
void | gtk_menu_item_set_accel_path ()
const gchar * | gtk_menu_item_get_accel_path ()
void | gtk_menu_item_select ()
void | gtk_menu_item_deselect ()
void | gtk_menu_item_activate ()
void | gtk_menu_item_toggle_size_request ()
void | gtk_menu_item_toggle_size_allocate ()
gboolean | gtk_menu_item_get_reserve_indicator ()
void | gtk_menu_item_set_reserve_indicator ()

## Properties

gchar * | accel-path | Read / Write
gchar * | label | Read / Write
gboolean | right-justified | Read / Write
GtkMenu * | submenu | Read / Write
gboolean | use-underline | Read / Write

## Style Properties

gfloat | arrow-scaling | Read
gint | arrow-spacing | Read
gint | horizontal-padding | Read
GtkShadowType | selected-shadow-type | Read
gint | toggle-spacing | Read
gint | width-chars | Read

## Signals

void | activate | Action
void | activate-item | Run First
void | deselect | Run First
void | select | Run First
void | toggle-size-allocate | Run First
void | toggle-size-request | Run First

## Types and Values

struct | GtkMenuItem
struct | GtkMenuItemClass

## Object Hierarchy

        GObject
        ╰── GInitiallyUnowned
            ╰── GtkWidget
                ╰── GtkContainer
                    ╰── GtkBin
                        ╰── GtkMenuItem
                            ├── GtkCheckMenuItem
                            ├── GtkImageMenuItem
                            ├── GtkSeparatorMenuItem
                            ╰── GtkTearoffMenuItem

## Implemented Interfaces

GtkMenuItem implements AtkImplementorIface, GtkBuildable, GtkActivatable and GtkActionable.

## Includes

    #include <gtk/gtk.h>

## Description

The GtkMenuItem widget and the derived widgets are the only valid children for menus. Their function is to correctly handle highlighting, alignment, events and submenus.

As a GtkMenuItem derives from GtkBin it can hold any valid child widget, although only a few are really useful.

By default, a GtkMenuItem sets a GtkAccelLabel as its child. GtkMenuItem has direct functions to set the label and its mnemonic. For more advanced label settings, you can fetch the child widget from the GtkBin.

An example for setting markup and accelerator on a MenuItem:

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    GtkWidget *child = gtk_bin_get_child (GTK_BIN (menu_item));
    gtk_label_set_markup (GTK_LABEL (child), "<i>new label</i> with <b>markup</b>");
    gtk_accel_label_set_accel (GTK_ACCEL_LABEL (child), GDK_KEY_1, 0);

### GtkMenuItem as GtkBuildable

The GtkMenuItem implementation of the GtkBuildable interface supports adding a submenu by specifying “submenu” as the “type” attribute of a <child> element.

An example of UI definition fragment with submenus:

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    <object class="GtkMenuItem">
      <child type="submenu">
        <object class="GtkMenu"/>
      </child>
    </object>

## Functions

### gtk_menu_item_new ()

    GtkWidget *
    gtk_menu_item_new (void);

Creates a new GtkMenuItem.

#### Returns

the newly created GtkMenuItem

### gtk_menu_item_new_with_label ()

    GtkWidget *
    gtk_menu_item_new_with_label (const gchar *label);

Creates a new GtkMenuItem whose child is a GtkLabel.

#### Parameters

label | the text for the label |

#### Returns

the newly created GtkMenuItem

### gtk_menu_item_new_with_mnemonic ()

    GtkWidget *
    gtk_menu_item_new_with_mnemonic (const gchar *label);

Creates a new GtkMenuItem containing a label.

The label will be created using `gtk_label_new_with_mnemonic()`, so underscores in `label` indicate the mnemonic for the menu item.

#### Parameters

label | The text of the button, with an underscore in front of the mnemonic character |

#### Returns

a new GtkMenuItem

### gtk_menu_item_set_right_justified ()

    void
    gtk_menu_item_set_right_justified (GtkMenuItem *menu_item,
                                       gboolean right_justified);

`gtk_menu_item_set_right_justified` has been deprecated since version 3.2 and should not be used in newly-written code.

If you insist on using it, use `gtk_widget_set_hexpand()` and `gtk_widget_set_halign()`.

Sets whether the menu item appears justified at the right side of a menu bar. This was traditionally done for “Help” menu items, but is now considered a bad idea. (If the widget layout is reversed for a right-to-left language like Hebrew or Arabic, right-justified-menu-items appear at the left.)

#### Parameters

menu_item | a GtkMenuItem. |
right_justified | if `TRUE` the menu item will appear at the far right if added to a menu bar |

### gtk_menu_item_get_right_justified ()

    gboolean
    gtk_menu_item_get_right_justified (GtkMenuItem *menu_item);

`gtk_menu_item_get_right_justified` has been deprecated since version 3.2 and should not be used in newly-written code.

See `gtk_menu_item_set_right_justified()`

Gets whether the menu item appears justified at the right side of the menu bar.

#### Parameters

menu_item | a GtkMenuItem |

#### Returns

`TRUE` if the menu item will appear at the far right if added to a menu bar.

### gtk_menu_item_get_label ()

    const gchar *
    gtk_menu_item_get_label (GtkMenuItem *menu_item);

Sets `text` on the `menu_item` label

#### Parameters

menu_item | a GtkMenuItem |

#### Returns

The text in the `menu_item` label. This is the internal string used by the label, and must not be modified.

Since 2.16

### gtk_menu_item_set_label ()

    void
    gtk_menu_item_set_label (GtkMenuItem *menu_item,
                             const gchar *label);

Sets `text` on the `menu_item` label

#### Parameters

menu_item | a GtkMenuItem |
label | the text you want to set |

Since 2.16

### gtk_menu_item_get_use_underline ()

    gboolean
    gtk_menu_item_get_use_underline (GtkMenuItem *menu_item);

Checks if an underline in the text indicates the next character should be used for the mnemonic accelerator key.

#### Parameters

menu_item | a GtkMenuItem |

#### Returns

`TRUE` if an embedded underline in the label indicates the mnemonic accelerator key.

Since 2.16

### gtk_menu_item_set_use_underline ()

    void
    gtk_menu_item_set_use_underline (GtkMenuItem *menu_item,
                                     gboolean setting);

If true, an underline in the text indicates the next character should be used for the mnemonic accelerator key.

#### Parameters

menu_item | a GtkMenuItem |
setting | `TRUE` if underlines in the text indicate mnemonics |

Since 2.16

### gtk_menu_item_set_submenu ()

    void
    gtk_menu_item_set_submenu (GtkMenuItem *menu_item,
                               GtkWidget *submenu);

Sets or replaces the menu item’s submenu, or removes it when a `NULL` submenu is passed.

#### Parameters

menu_item | a GtkMenuItem |
submenu | the submenu, or `NULL`. | [allow-none][type Gtk.Menu]

### gtk_menu_item_get_submenu ()

    GtkWidget *
    gtk_menu_item_get_submenu (GtkMenuItem *menu_item);

Gets the submenu underneath this menu item, if any. See `gtk_menu_item_set_submenu()`.

#### Parameters

menu_item | a GtkMenuItem |

#### Returns

submenu for this menu item, or `NULL` if none.

[transfer none]

### gtk_menu_item_set_accel_path ()

    void
    gtk_menu_item_set_accel_path (GtkMenuItem *menu_item,
                                  const gchar *accel_path);

Set the accelerator path on `menu_item` , through which runtime changes of the menu item’s accelerator caused by the user can be identified and saved to persistent storage (see `gtk_accel_map_save()` on this). To set up a default accelerator for this menu item, call `gtk_accel_map_add_entry()` with the same `accel_path` . See also `gtk_accel_map_add_entry()` on the specifics of accelerator paths, and `gtk_menu_set_accel_path()` for a more convenient variant of this function.

This function is basically a convenience wrapper that handles calling `gtk_widget_set_accel_path()` with the appropriate accelerator group for the menu item.

Note that you do need to set an accelerator on the parent menu with `gtk_menu_set_accel_group()` for this to work.

Note that `accel_path` string will be stored in a GQuark. Therefore, if you pass a static string, you can save some memory by interning it first with `g_intern_static_string()`.

#### Parameters

menu_item | a valid GtkMenuItem |
accel_path | accelerator path, corresponding to this menu item’s functionality, or `NULL` to unset the current path. | [allow-none]

### gtk_menu_item_get_accel_path ()

    const gchar *
    gtk_menu_item_get_accel_path (GtkMenuItem *menu_item);

Retrieve the accelerator path that was previously set on `menu_item` .

See `gtk_menu_item_set_accel_path()` for details.

#### Parameters

menu_item | a valid GtkMenuItem |

#### Returns

the accelerator path corresponding to this menu item’s functionality, or `NULL` if not set

Since 2.14

### gtk_menu_item_select ()

    void
    gtk_menu_item_select (GtkMenuItem *menu_item);

Emits the “select” signal on the given item.

#### Parameters

menu_item | the menu item |

### gtk_menu_item_deselect ()

    void
    gtk_menu_item_deselect (GtkMenuItem *menu_item);

Emits the “deselect” signal on the given item.

#### Parameters

menu_item | the menu item |

### gtk_menu_item_activate ()

    void
    gtk_menu_item_activate (GtkMenuItem *menu_item);

Emits the “activate” signal on the given item

#### Parameters

menu_item | the menu item |

### gtk_menu_item_toggle_size_request ()

    void
    gtk_menu_item_toggle_size_request (GtkMenuItem *menu_item,
                                       gint *requisition);

Emits the “toggle-size-request” signal on the given item.

#### Parameters

menu_item | the menu item |
requisition | the requisition to use as signal data. | [inout]

### gtk_menu_item_toggle_size_allocate ()

    void
    gtk_menu_item_toggle_size_allocate (GtkMenuItem *menu_item,
                                        gint allocation);

Emits the “toggle-size-allocate” signal on the given item.

#### Parameters

menu_item | the menu item. |
allocation | the allocation to use as signal data. |

### gtk_menu_item_get_reserve_indicator ()

    gboolean
    gtk_menu_item_get_reserve_indicator (GtkMenuItem *menu_item);

Returns whether the `menu_item` reserves space for the submenu indicator, regardless if it has a submenu or not.

#### Parameters

menu_item | a GtkMenuItem |

#### Returns

`TRUE` if `menu_item` always reserves space for the submenu indicator

Since 3.0

### gtk_menu_item_set_reserve_indicator ()

    void
    gtk_menu_item_set_reserve_indicator (GtkMenuItem *menu_item,
                                         gboolean reserve);

Sets whether the `menu_item` should reserve space for the submenu indicator, regardless if it actually has a submenu or not.

There should be little need for applications to call this functions.

#### Parameters

menu_item | a GtkMenuItem |
reserve | the new value |

Since 3.0

## Types and Values

### struct GtkMenuItem

    struct GtkMenuItem;

### struct GtkMenuItemClass

    struct GtkMenuItemClass {
      GtkBinClass parent_class;

      /* If the following flag is true, then we should always
       * hide the menu when the MenuItem is activated. Otherwise,
       * it is up to the caller. For instance, when navigating
       * a menu with the keyboard, <Space> doesn't hide, but
       * <Return> does.
       */
      guint hide_on_activate : 1;

      void (* activate)             (GtkMenuItem *menu_item);
      void (* activate_item)        (GtkMenuItem *menu_item);
      void (* toggle_size_request)  (GtkMenuItem *menu_item,
                                     gint        *requisition);
      void (* toggle_size_allocate) (GtkMenuItem *menu_item,
                                     gint         allocation);
      void (* set_label)            (GtkMenuItem *menu_item,
                                     const gchar *label);
      const gchar * (* get_label)   (GtkMenuItem *menu_item);

      void (* select)               (GtkMenuItem *menu_item);
      void (* deselect)             (GtkMenuItem *menu_item);
    };

#### Members

GtkBinClass `parent_class`; | The parent class. |
guint `hide_on_activate` : 1; | If `TRUE`, then we should always hide the menu when the `GtkMenuItem` is activated. Otherwise, it is up to the caller. |
`activate` () | Signal emitted when the item is activated. |
`activate_item` () | Signal emitted when the item is activated, but also if the menu item has a submenu. |
`toggle_size_request` () |  |
`toggle_size_allocate` () |  |
`set_label` () | Sets `text` on the GtkMenuItem label |
`get_label` () | Gets `text` from the GtkMenuItem label |
`select` () | Signal emitted when the item is selected. |
`deselect` () | Signal emitted when the item is deselected. |

## Property Details

### The `“accel-path”` property

      “accel-path”               gchar *

Sets the accelerator path of the menu item, through which runtime changes of the menu item's accelerator caused by the user can be identified and saved to persistant storage.

Flags: Read / Write

Default value: NULL

Since 2.14

### The `“label”` property

      “label”                    gchar *

The text for the child label.

Flags: Read / Write

Default value: ""

Since 2.16

### The `“right-justified”` property

      “right-justified”          gboolean

Sets whether the menu item appears justified at the right side of a menu bar.

Flags: Read / Write

Default value: FALSE

Since 2.14

### The `“submenu”` property

      “submenu”                  GtkMenu *

The submenu attached to the menu item, or `NULL` if it has none.

Flags: Read / Write

Since 2.12

### The `“use-underline”` property

      “use-underline”            gboolean

`TRUE` if underlines in the text indicate mnemonics.

Flags: Read / Write

Default value: FALSE

Since 2.16

## Style Property Details

### The `“arrow-scaling”` style property

      “arrow-scaling”            gfloat

Amount of space used up by arrow, relative to the menu item's font size.

Flags: Read

Allowed values: [0,2]

Default value: 0.8

### The `“arrow-spacing”` style property

      “arrow-spacing”            gint

Space between label and arrow.

Flags: Read

Allowed values: >= 0

Default value: 10

### The `“horizontal-padding”` style property

      “horizontal-padding”       gint

Padding to left and right of the menu item.

`GtkMenuItem:horizontal-padding` has been deprecated since version 3.8 and should not be used in newly-written code.

use the standard padding CSS property (through objects like GtkStyleContext and GtkCssProvider); the value of this style property is ignored.

Flags: Read

Allowed values: >= 0

Default value: 0

### The `“selected-shadow-type”` style property

      “selected-shadow-type”     GtkShadowType

Shadow type when item is selected.

Flags: Read

Default value: GTK_SHADOW_NONE

### The `“toggle-spacing”` style property

      “toggle-spacing”           gint

Space between icon and label.

Flags: Read

Allowed values: >= 0

Default value: 5

### The `“width-chars”` style property

      “width-chars”              gint

The minimum desired width of the menu item in characters.

Flags: Read

Allowed values: >= 0

Default value: 12

Since 2.14

## Signal Details

### The `“activate”` signal

    void
    user_function (GtkMenuItem *menuitem,
                   gpointer     user_data)

Emitted when the item is activated.

#### Parameters

menuitem | the object which received the signal. |
user_data | user data set when the signal handler was connected. |

Flags: Action

### The `“activate-item”` signal

    void
    user_function (GtkMenuItem *menuitem,
                   gpointer     user_data)

Emitted when the item is activated, but also if the menu item has a submenu. For normal applications, the relevant signal is “activate”.

#### Parameters

menuitem | the object which received the signal. |
user_data | user data set when the signal handler was connected. |

Flags: Run First

### The `“deselect”` signal

    void
    user_function (GtkMenuItem *menuitem,
                   gpointer     user_data)

Flags: Run First

### The `“select”` signal

    void
    user_function (GtkMenuItem *menuitem,
                   gpointer     user_data)

Flags: Run First

### The `“toggle-size-allocate”` signal

    void
    user_function (GtkMenuItem *menuitem,
                   gint         arg1,
                   gpointer     user_data)

Flags: Run First

### The `“toggle-size-request”` signal

    void
    user_function (GtkMenuItem *menuitem,
                   gpointer     arg1,
                   gpointer     user_data)

Flags: Run First

## See Also

GtkBin, GtkMenuShell