jQuery .text() gets or sets text content of the target element;
Also check jQuery .html()
js:
$(function(){ var text = $('.target-copy').text(); // copy text $('.target-paste').text( text ); // paste text });
html:
<div> <strong>copied text:</strong> <span class="target-copy">The quick <em>brown fox</em> jumps over the <span style="color:green;">lazy dog</span>.</span> </div> <div> <strong>pasted text:</strong> <span class="target-paste"></span> </div>