1963577 - NVDA says `clickable` before saying the option

Status: RESOLVED WONTFIX

(Toolkit :: UI Widgets, defect)

Description

[Alexandru Trif, Desktop Test Engineering [:atrif]]

Attachment: nvda_settings.gif

Found in

• 140.0a1 (2025-04-29)

Affected versions

• 140.0a1 (2025-04-27)
• 139.0b1
• 138.0

Tested platforms

• Affected platforms: Windows 10x64
• Unaffected platforms: Ubuntu 24, macOS 12

Preconditions

• settings.revamp.design: true
• NVDA active

Steps to reproduce

1. Inside Perferecens > General > Browsing section, use the Tab key to navigate through options.

Expected result

• No clickable word is spoken by NVDA

Actual result

• clickable word is spoken by NVDA

Regression range

• Not a regression, new feature.

Additional notes

• Attached a screen recording.

Comment 1

[Mark Striemer [:mstriemer]]

I found this GitHub issue which seems to suggest NVDA will suppress the "clickable" if the focused item is clearly clickable, like a button, checkbox, etc. Perhaps we need to be setting some sort of role somewhere (although the focused item is the checkbox in the shadow DOM so seems a little odd)

Comment 2

[Tim Giles [:tgiles]]

I need to get further confirmation, but I think this is happening because of the <label> element we're using to wrap the <input> element.

For example, if you run this snippet:

<label for="name">Name:
<input
  type="checkbox"
  id="name"
  name="name"
  required />
</label>

When you first tab to the input element, NVDA will announce "clickable Name: checkbox" along with the standard announcement when focusing an input. I'm assuming this is either a bug in NVDA or a conscious decision due to information that I'm not aware of.

Comment 3

[Mark Striemer [:mstriemer]]

I'm also getting "clickable" read by NVDA with basic HTML 🤔 I put together a JSBin with 3 examples. A standalone label that references a checkbox, a label that wraps a checkbox, and just a checkbox with an aria-label. Both cases that have a label read "clickable", but the version with just an aria-label does not.

I used the f key to navigate to the checkboxes with NVDA and hear this:

clickable frame frame Label standalone: check box not checked
clickable Label wrapping: check box not checked
Label aria-label check box not checked

With VoiceOver I get this (it treats the label as its own element using VO+arrows):

Label standalone: clickable
Label standalone: unchecked checkbox
Label wrapping: clickable
Label wrapping: unchecked checkbox
Label aria-label unchecked checkbox

Using the VO+Cmd+J shortcut I just learned for form controls it only selects the checkboxes themselves and I get these lines read out:

Label standalone: unchecked checkbox
Label wrapping: unchecked checkbox
Label aria-label unchecked checkbox

Jamie, is this NVDA behaiour expected?

Comment 4

[James Teh [:Jamie]]

It's currently expected. Whether it remains so is up to the NVDA developers. Strictly speaking, the label is clickable: if you click it, it activates the associated control, which is why Firefox accessibility reports that it is clickable. However, NVDA may choose to suppress this at some point in future.

Comment 5

[Mark Striemer [:mstriemer]]

Sounds like this is a WONTFIX to me then. Thanks Jamie