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MD068 - Empty footnote definitions

Aliases: empty-footnote-definition

What this rule does

Checks that footnote definitions have content and are not empty.

Why this matters

  • Prevents mistakes: Empty footnotes are almost always unintentional
  • Avoids confusion: Readers clicking a footnote expect to find information
  • Catches incomplete work: Flags placeholder footnotes that need content

Examples

Correct

Text with a footnote[^1] reference.

[^1]: This footnote has content.

Correct - multi-line footnote

Text with a footnote[^1] reference.

[^1]:
    Content on the next line is valid.
    Additional paragraphs work too.

Incorrect

Text with a footnote[^1] reference.

[^1]:

Warning: Footnote definition [^1] is empty

Incorrect - whitespace only

Text with a footnote[^1] reference.

[^1]:

Warning: Footnote definition [^1] is empty

Configuration

This rule has no configuration options.

Automatic fixes

This rule cannot automatically fix issues because it cannot determine what content should be added to empty footnotes.