Whats This Item?
by Im_not_tim
Whats This Item? is a Fabric client mod that shows a description for the item a player hovers over in the inventory.
What it does
Hovering over an item in the inventory opens its description, and a programmable button can be pressed to show or hide it. The feature is aimed at players who want item text on demand, and the author describes it as a way to bring back the item descriptions found in legacy console versions of the game.
Only the client needs the mod, so a server does not have to run it and players join without installing it. Builds exist for Fabric, covering 1.21 – 1.21.11, with 1.0.0 for 1.21.11 as the latest file, and the code is released under the MIT License without being open source.
Key features
Item descriptions on hover
Hovering the cursor over an item in the inventory displays a description of that item.
Programmable button
A button can be pressed to bring up the item description, and it can be rebound in the game controls.
Legacy console style
The description behaviour follows the item tooltips of legacy console editions, according to the author.
Gallery
Compatibility
Latest build for each game version and loader.
1.21.x12 of 12 versions with builds
Only full game releases are shown. This mod publishes no snapshot builds.
How it compares
Legacy Lighting is a Fabric client mod for 1.21.11 under the MIT License and is not open source. Console Sounds is a Fabric client mod for 1.19.3 – 1.21.11 under the MIT License and is open source. Both are client-side only, like this mod.
| Mod | Loaders | Game versions | Environment | Updated |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Whats This Item? | Fabric | 1.21 – 1.21.11 | Client-side only | 2026-03-11 |
| Legacy Lighting | Fabric | 1.21.11 | Client-side only | 2026-04-11 |
| Console Sounds | Fabric | 1.19.3 – 1.21.11 | Client-side only | 2026-01-19 |
Questions
Does Whats This Item? need Fabric API?
In the catalog
Whats This Item? is one of 29,952 Game mechanics mods on ModsFinder, and one of 19,630 Game mechanics mods for Fabric. 19,862 mods support Minecraft 1.21.11.
More from Im_not_tim
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What the author says
This Mod adds back the What's This button from legacy console versions of the game 🚨DISCLAMER!🚨 Im not great at modding, so this was made with a lot of help with Claud AI
Official listing
- Modrinth page
- modrinth.com/mod/whats-this-item
- Owner
- Im_not_tim
- Published
- 2026-03-09
- Updated on Modrinth
- 2026-03-11
- Facts verified
- 2026-10-15