I didn't escape the html for the example & my solution.

This is the html from the example on MDN.

<p>
  Heat the oven to <meter min="200" max="500" value="350">350 degrees</meter>.
</p>

This is what I think it should look like:

<p>
  Heat the oven to <meter min="200" max="500" value="350"></meter> 350 degrees.
</p>

My bad. Hope this makes it clearer.

Hello! This is a bit confusing but intentional. The idea is that the text and the meter bar show the exact same content, so only one of them is displayed. The text is meant as a fallback text for (a) screen readers (b) browsers that don't support meter bars (c) any other cases when the bar doesn't show.

Is this a bad example? I'd say yes because you would never do this. I think both examples on this page should be replaced with something more realistic.

Thank you for the response & clarifying what was intended. From the perspective of someone unfamiliar with the <meter> tag, it is confusing, and as you say, the stated example scenario is part of the problem. Even a one-line explanation of what the example demonstrates would've helped. Having an instruction to heat an oven to a temperature, when there is only a meter without any numeric guidance, is so counter-intuitive, I couldn't reconcile the idea that it might have been intentional. Thanks for adjusting the issue title, too.