Use WordPress’s More block (or the Classic Editor’s <!--more--> quicktag) at the point where your teaser should end. It creates a Read More link on home and archive pages only when the active template displays full post content. If the template uses excerpts instead, WordPress uses the post excerpt and ignores the More break.
What the More tag does
The More feature marks a boundary between introductory content and the rest of a post. WordPress describes the block as a way to display a Read More link to the full post on the blog home page or archive pages (More block documentation).
The break affects list views, not the content structure of the full post itself. A visitor who opens the post still reaches the complete article. The result depends on how your theme’s home and archive templates output posts:
- Full-content template: WordPress stops the listing at the More block and displays a link.
- Excerpt template: WordPress uses the post’s excerpt instead, so the More block has no effect on that listing.
- Query Loop: The block may be honored when the Query Loop is configured to display full content.
Only one More block can be used in a post.
Insert a More block in the Block Editor
- Open the post in the WordPress Block Editor.
- Place the cursor where the teaser should stop.
- Click the + block inserter, search for More, and select the More block. You can also type
/morein a new paragraph block and press Enter. - Click the link text in the block and replace the default wording, such as Continue reading or Read the full story.
- Update or publish the post, then check the relevant home or archive page.
To restore the theme’s default link wording, remove your custom text and save the post.
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Choose whether the teaser repeats on the full post
The More block includes a Hide the excerpt setting. It is off by default. Turn it on when you do not want the content before the break to appear again after a visitor opens the full post. This setting controls repetition on the full post; it does not force archive pages to use excerpts or change the theme’s archive template.
Use the More tag in the Classic Editor
In the Classic Editor, place the cursor after the introductory section and click the More quicktag. WordPress inserts this marker:
<!--more-->
The marker separates the teaser from the remaining content when a home-page template outputs full post content. The Classic Editor documentation explains that template code determines the result: a template calling the_excerpt() shows excerpts, while one calling the_content() can use the More marker (Write posts in the Classic Editor).
More block versus an excerpt
These features solve different problems. A More block is a precise cut in the post’s content. An excerpt is a separate summary field that can replace the listing output when the theme or block is configured for excerpts.
| Question | More block or <!--more--> |
Excerpt |
|---|---|---|
| What is it? | A boundary inside the post content. | An optional summary associated with the post. |
| When does it control a listing? | When the home or archive template displays full content. | When the template displays excerpts, or an Excerpt block is used. |
| How is the teaser written? | It is the content before the boundary. | You write a separate summary, or WordPress generates fallback text. |
| Can the full post repeat the teaser? | The More block’s Hide the excerpt option can prevent repetition. | The summary is separate from the post body. |
When no excerpt is supplied, the Excerpt block falls back to the first 55 words followed by […], according to WordPress documentation (Excerpt block; What is an excerpt?).
Do not confuse the More block with the Read More block
The Read More block is a separate, dynamic, server-rendered block intended for templates. It displays a link to a post, page, or another content type and is documented as core/read-more in the developer reference (Read More block).
Use the More block inside an individual post when you need a teaser boundary. Use the Read More block when building a site template or Query Loop design that needs a link component. Inserting one does not create the same content break as the More block.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.Why your More tag may not work
The theme is using excerpts
This is the most common explanation. If the archive template calls for excerpts, WordPress ignores the More boundary and uses the manual excerpt when one exists. Check the theme’s archive or blog settings and inspect the page in the Site Editor if you are using a block theme.
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The post is displayed through a Query Loop
Open the Query Loop settings and verify whether its post-content area is configured for full content or for an Excerpt block. The More block can be honored in a Query Loop depending on those settings.
The marker is in the wrong editing context
The Block Editor requires a More block; the Classic Editor uses <!--more-->. Do not paste the Classic marker into a normal block and expect it to behave like an inserted More block.
You placed more than one break
WordPress supports one More block per post. Remove additional breaks and keep the one at the intended teaser boundary.
You are testing the full post instead of a listing
The break is designed for blog home and archive output. Opening the post’s permalink normally shows the complete content, so test from the home page, category archive, tag archive, or relevant Query Loop.
Quick Recap
How to choose the right approach
- Identify the listing template. If it displays full content, a More break can control where the teaser ends. If it displays excerpts, edit the excerpt instead.
- Decide whether the teaser should be copied or rewritten. Use More when the opening paragraphs are the exact teaser you want; write an excerpt when the listing needs a distinct summary.
- Decide whether the opening should repeat. Enable Hide the excerpt when the full post should begin after the teaser rather than showing it again.
- Match the tool to the context. Use the More block or Classic quicktag inside a post; use the Read More block when designing a template.
A practical publishing checklist
- Place exactly one More block, or one
<!--more-->marker, at the end of a useful introductory section. - Customize the link text only if it tells readers clearly what opens next.
- Choose Hide the excerpt based on whether repetition is desirable.
- Preview the post on the actual home or archive view, not only on its permalink.
- If the link is absent, verify whether the template uses full content, an Excerpt block, or a manually configured Query Loop.
- If the site uses excerpts, write and update the post’s excerpt rather than moving the More marker.
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