jQuery parent()
get parent with class
<!DOCTYPE html> <html> <head> <style> .ancestors * {// ww w. j av a2s. c o m display: block; border: 2px solid lightgrey; color: lightgrey; padding: 5px; margin: 15px; } </style> <script src="https://ajax.googleapis.com/ajax/libs/jquery/3.4.1/jquery.min.js"></script> <script> $(document).ready(function(){ $("span").parent("li.first").css({"color": "red", "border": "2px solid red"}); }); </script> </head> <body class="ancestors">body <div style="width:500px;">div <ul>ul <li class="first">li <span>span</span> </li> <li class="second">li <span>span</span> </li> </ul> </div> </body> </html>