Document: adoptNode() method

{{ ApiRef("DOM") }}

Document.adoptNode() transfers a {{Glossary("node/dom", "node")}} from another {{domxref("Document", "document", "", "1")}} into the method's document. The adopted node and its subtree are removed from their original document (if any), and their {{domxref("Node.ownerDocument", "ownerDocument")}} is changed to the current document. The node can then be inserted into the current document.

Syntax

adoptNode(externalNode)

Parameters

• externalNode
  • : The node from another document to be adopted.

Return value

The copied importedNode in the scope of the importing document.

After calling this method, importedNode and externalNode are the same object.

[!NOTE] importedNode's {{domxref("Node.parentNode")}} is null, since it has not yet been inserted into the document tree!

Examples

const iframe = document.querySelector("iframe");
const iframeImages = iframe.contentDocument.querySelectorAll("img");
const newParent = document.getElementById("images");

iframeImages.forEach((imgEl) => {
  newParent.appendChild(document.adoptNode(imgEl));
});

Notes

Before they can be inserted into the current document, nodes from external documents should either be:

• cloned using {{domXref("document.importNode()")}}; or
• adopted using document.adoptNode().

For more on the {{domXref("Node.ownerDocument")}} issues, see the W3C DOM FAQ.

Specifications

{{Specifications}}

Browser compatibility

{{Compat}}

See also

• {{domxref("document.importNode()")}}