<!DOCTYPE html> <style> p { font: 16px monospace; white-space: pre; } span { background-color: lime } </style> <p><span>a b</span></p> <p><span>a b</span></p> <p><span>a b</span></p> <p><span> a b </span></p> <p><span>a </span></p> <p><span> </span></p> <p><span> </span></p> <p><span>. </span></p> <p><span>a b</span></p> <p><span>a b</span></p> <p><span> a b </span></p> <p><span>a </span></p> <p><span> </span></p> <p><span> </span></p> <p><span>. </span></p>