Are style sheets loaded in a specific order?

Style sheets are indeed loaded in a specific order in web development. This order is significant because it determines how styles are applied to HTML elements and can affect the final presentation of a web page. When multiple styles are defined for the same element, the order in which the stylesheets are included in the HTML document can lead to one stylesheet's rules overriding those of another.

The browser processes stylesheets in the order they appear in the HTML source code. If two styles are competing for the same HTML element, the rule defined last takes priority due to the cascade's natural flow. This concept is fundamental to understanding CSS (Cascading Style Sheets), where "cascading" refers specifically to the hierarchy and order in which styles are applied.

Although other factors can also influence which styles are applied, such as specificity and importance (using !important), the order of loading is an essential basic principle that developers must consider when styling a web page. This understanding allows for improved organization and management of styles in more complex projects where multiple stylesheets may be in use.