WordPress Cheat Sheet

WordPress Theme Definition

Your theme’s information is stored in the theme’s main style.css file. The information is displayed when you view your theme on Appearance > Themes or on WordPress’ theme repository (if it’s submitted and approved).

/*
Theme Name: Twenty Seventeen
Theme URI: https://wordpress.org/themes/twentyseventeen/
Author: the WordPress team
Author URI: https://wordpress.org/
Description: Twenty Seventeen brings your site to life with immersive featured images and subtle animations. With a focus on business sites, it features multiple sections on the front page as well as widgets, navigation and social menus, a logo, and more. Personalize its asymmetrical grid with a custom color scheme and showcase your multimedia content with post formats. Our default theme for 2017 works great in many languages, for any abilities, and on any device.
Version: 1.0
License: GNU General Public License v2 or later
License URI: https://www.gnu.org/licenses/gpl-2.0.html
Text Domain: twentyseventeen
Tags: one-column, two-columns, right-sidebar, flexible-header, accessibility-ready, custom-colors, custom-header, custom-menu, custom-logo, editor-style, featured-images, footer-widgets, post-formats, rtl-language-support, sticky-post, theme-options, threaded-comments, translation-ready
This theme, like WordPress, is licensed under the GPL.
Use it to make something cool, have fun, and share what you've learned with others.
*/

WordPress Template Files

Basic files every WordPress theme should have:

style.css          // Theme's main stylesheet file
index.php          // Main template file
single.php         // Single post file.
                   // ..Used for to display single posts only
archive.php        // Archive or Category template file
searchform.php     // Search form file 
search.php         // Search results file
404.php            // 404 error page file.
                   // ..Will be displayed if no page can be found.
comments.php       // Comments template file
footer.php         // Footer content file
header.php         // Header content file
sidebar.php        // Sidebar content file
page.php           // Single page file. Used for pages only.

WordPress Template Anatomy

header.php

get_header();
wp_nav_menu(); // (registered in functions.php)
get_search_form();

The Loop

index.php
home.php
archive.php
page.php
single.php
comments_template();
search.php
author.php
404.php

sidebar.php

get_sidebar()

footer.php

get_footer()

Not Displayed

style.css               // Theme style
functions.php           // Theme functions
comments.php            // Comments template

WordPress Template Tags

Template tags are used within themes to retrieve content from your database.

The content could be anything from a blog title to a complete sidebar.

Template tags are the preferred method to pull content into your theme because: they can print dynamic content; they can be used in multiple theme files; and they separate the theme into smaller, more understandable, sections.

the_content()                      Get post content
the_excerpt()                      Get the post excerpt
the_title()                        Get the title of the post
the_permalink()                    Display post link
the_category(', ')                 Display category of a post
the_author()                       Show post author
the_ID()                           Display post ID
edit_post_link()                   Show Edit link for a post
next_post_link('%link')            Display next page URL
previous_post_link('%link')        Display previous page URL
get_links_list()                   Retrieve blogroll links
wp_list_pages()                    Retrieve all pages
wp_get_archives()                  Retrieve archive for the site
wp_list_cats()                     Retrieve all categories
get_calendar()                     Show the built-in WordPress calendar
wp_register()                      Show register link
wp_loginout()                      Displays login or logout links (for registered users)

Include Tags

Use these tags to include templates to your theme.

<?php get_header(); ?>               Includes header.php and display its content
<?php get_sidebar(); ?>              Includes sidebar.php
<?php get_footer(); ?>               Includes the footer.php
<?php comments_template(); ?>        Load specific template for comments

Useful Header Functions

site_url()                              Get WordPress site url
wp_title()                              Get page title
bloginfo('name')                        Get blog name
bloginfo('description')                 Get blog description
get_stylesheet_directory_uri()          Get stylesheet directory URI
bloginfo('atom_url')                    Get Atom feed URL
bloginfo('rss2_url')                    RSS 2.0 URL

The Loop

The Loop is the default mechanism WordPress uses for outputting posts through a theme’s template files.

<?php if ( have_posts() ) : ?>
  <?php while ( have_posts() ) : the_post(); ?>
    // Display post content 
  <?php endwhile; ?>
<?php endif; ?>

WordPress Menu and Sidebars

Default Navigation Menu

<?php wp_nav_menu(); ?>

Specific Navigation Menu

<?php wp_nav_menu( array('menu' => My Navigation' )); ?>

Category Based Navigation

<ul id="menu">
  <li <?php if(is_home()) { ?> class="current-cat" <?php } ?>>
    <a href="<?php bloginfo('home'); ?>">Home</a>
  </li>
  <?php wp_list_categories('title_li=&orderby=id');?>
</ul>

Page Based Navigation

<ul id="menu">
  <li <?php if(is_home()) { ?> class="current-page-item" <?php } ?>>
    <a href="<?php bloginfo('home'); ?>">Home</a>
  </li>
  <?php wp_list_pages('sort_column=menu_order&depth=1&title_li=');? >
</ul>

Registering New Sidebar

Add the following code to your functions.php file to register a new sidebar.

add_action( 'widgets_init', 'theme_slug_widgets_init' );
function theme_slug_widgets_init() {
  register_sidebar( array(
    'name' => __( 'My Sidebar', 'theme-slug' ),
    'id' => 'sidebar-1',
    'description' => __( 'Description', 'theme-slug' ),
    'before_widget' => '<li id="%1$s" class="widget %2$s">',
    'after_widget' => '</li>',
    'before_title' => '<h2 class="widgettitle">',
    'after_title' => '<h2>',
  ));
}

Alt + Shift + Key

Windows/Linux: ”Alt + Shift + Key“.

Mac: “Ctrl + Option (alt) + Key”. (WordPress 4.2 below use “Alt + Shift + Key”).

n          Check Spelling (This requires a plugin.)
l          Align Left
j          Justify Text
c          Align Center
d          Strikethrough
r          Align Right
u          o List
a          Insert link
o          1. List
s          Remove link
q          Quote
m          Insert Image
w          Distraction Free Writing mode
t          Insert More Tag
p          Insert Page Break tag
h          Help
x          Add/remove code tag
1          Heading 1
2          Heading 2
3          Heading 3
4          Heading 4
5          Heading 5
6          Heading 6
9          Address

Ctrl + Key

Windows and Linux: “Ctrl + Key“,
Mac: “Command + Key“.

c          Copy
v          Paste
a          Select all
x          Cut
z          Undo
y          Redo
b          Bold
i          Italic
u          Underline
k          Insert/edit link

Formatting Shortcuts

Formatting Shortcuts while using visual editor.

*         Start an unordered list
-         Start an unordered list
1.        Start an ordered list
1)        Start an ordered list
##        H2
###       H3
####      H4
#####     H5
######    H6
>         Transform text into blockquote
- –       Horizontal line
`..`      Transform text into code block